Nightmare Angel
by Cryocene
Summary: Death's vastness holds no peace. I come at the end of a long road. Neither a human, nor a faunus... All bends to my will. (INDEFINITE HIATUS)
1. Awakening of the Dark Angel

**Author Note: Greetings, my readers. My name is Cryocene and here I am, with another new story! An OC-oriented fic titled "Nightmare Angel".**

 **I'm here with some news for those who have read my ongoing RWBY story, "Something about a Rose" and "Bring it on, our Destiny". I'm sorry, but the former will be put into a hiatus for a while. (I'm really sorry, even though in the latter's A/N I promised to continue it...)**

 **I don't think I'll be able to handle more than three fics for now, and since I am already handling one fic outside RWBY category, I can only handle two RWBY fics and update them regularly in the future.**

 **Also, I figured it would hone my character-creation and character-interaction skills better if I concentrated on this OC-oriented fic and the Adam x Weiss story first.**

 **Let it be known that I don't like OCs. They tend to ruin a fan fiction, and it's typically rare for fics with OC to become anything resembling a story. But I write this story in order to test my OC's credibility to become a main character, so that I can use it in my future, actual stories of mine. This OC is basically a prototype of the protagonist for my future novels.**

 **That being said, I'm testing her personality and character, not her backstory. So this OC's backstory isn't completely original, and relies on my own perception regarding Remnant's setting... although I would want to say with confidence that it hasn't crossed the line of unrealistic, why don't you judge it by yourself?**

 **Note: By the way, like "Bring it on, our Destiny", this fic will make full use of lyrics of many songs, they are not mine and likely never will be, and for each chapter with them I will list them at the bottom of the chapter.**

 **Extra Note: I'm not arrogant or ignorant enough to just ignore the reviews of my other stories. It's just I dislike to reply to the reviews in my stories... outside of that story's A/N.**

 **Now that's done, let's do this!**

* * *

It was a perpetual darkness.

In a faraway land unknown to man, with landscapes straight out of hell itself, decorated with lonely crystals on the ground and ghastly clouds on the sky, inhabited by nothing but creatures of darkness.

It was only fitting that ignorant souls would think that it was the worst place on Remnant.

They couldn't be more wrong.

Deep under the surface of the hellish land, resides a location where not even the Grimm dared to enter.

It was a prison of eternity. It was a vault of endless tears.

It was a huge chamber full of obelisks both on its ceiling and on its floor. Being black, glowing crystals, each obelisk was radiating with darkness. There was no way in or out, except by tearing the very fabric of space-time itself. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to state that the room was inside a different realm.

In its center, a Witch stood.

It was Grimm in human form. It possessed the body of a woman with the deathly pallor complexions. Purple veins were visible around her face and throughout her arms, and her eyes were those of the Grimm themselves.

Clad in a long, dark robe that gave off the impression of a twisted sorceress, and had the ornate hairstyle that resembled a queen, it was crystal clear that the Witch was not of this world.

"Rise from your slumber, my Angel."

As the Witch spoke, the obelisk closest to her began to crack soundlessly. A few moments after, the crystal shattered into pieces.

From its wake, a figure of a girl was left.

The figure appeared young, her body was small and of slim build, giving the impression of a girl in her earliest teenage years. Her hair was unkempt and messy, casting a shadow over her face.

She was lying on the floor sideways, unmoving, and without anything to preserve her modesty- revealing scars throughout her form.

Scars from various injuries -garrotes, stabs, slashes, bites, burns, frostbites, every form of wound known to man- were there, carved on her body.

"...Ugh."

The girl grunted, as if she was in pain. Slowly, she stood.

"How was your sleep?"

The Witch spoke with a surprising amount of gentleness in its voice.

"It felt like an abyss..."

The Angel replied as she looked up on the Witch.

Unlike her body, her pale face was free of scars. However, her eyes were shut tightly. After a few moments- tears of blood flowed down from it.

It was almost as if she didn't have any eyes at all, within the sockets.

The Witch continued. "I suppose it's enjoyable, then."

"Is it finally the _Promised Time_ , my master?" The Angel asked.

"Indeed, it is."

The girl's lips instantly curved into a smile. "Oh, it's been so long..."

The Witch smiled at her.

"I'll give you the freedom to choose, Leliel Blith."

* * *

After leaving the eternal prison with her master's portal, Leliel found herself not within the familiar land of darkness, next to her master. Instead, her feet felt like she was standing on a floor of a building.

 _She must have sent me somewhere else,_ Leliel thought.

"Hello?" She spoke.

There was no answer.

She didn't need one, though. Although blind, Leliel was highly sensitive to vibrations and sounds. Using her own voice, she could perform what only certain animals and certain Faunus were capable of doing- echolocation.

She was inside her own room. The last room she slept on before being petrified in the vault of tears.

Despite being empty for decades, the room was not dirty at all. The air was fresh, free of dust. Similarly, her feet could feel no dirtiness. Every single furniture there was still in the exact same position as decades ago.

It was as if time was frozen within the room.

Turning around, Leliel stepped forward twice, and stopped before a large wardrobe.

Smiling, the eyeless girl opened the unlocked wardrobe. She didn't need to see to know what was inside: her clothes, her accessories, her weapons, and her gifts.

Undergarments; full-body suit, fingerless gloves, and high-heels made from obsidian glass residues of Volcanic Dust; a Dust Carrier Action Cloak _Wings of Thorns_ ; and lastly Salem's gifts, a pair of artificial eyes and a lyre called _Nocturne_.

 _Okay... this may take a while._

* * *

On top of a cliff within the land of darkness, Salem stood against the blood-red sunset as she waited for her underling to wear her gear.

It had taken half an hour, if she counted it right. But Salem didn't care. She had gotten used to waiting.

 _Patience is a virtue, after all._

"...Oh?"

The Witch turned around, noticing something even before she had turned to see it.

The Angel was right behind her -fully clothed and equipped with her black cloak- kneeling and ready for her commands.

"I see that you're done." Salem said.

"Yes, my master." She replied curtly.

Salem smiled darkly at that. Her Angel had always been the more pleasant among her pawns. Totally unlike most others -such as Cinder Fall- Leliel Blith was interesting.

She was driven not by the selfishness of greedy ambitions, nor the determination to realize hypocrite ideals- no, Leliel was more like her.

She wanted the truth to be told.

"Well?" Salem said in a challenging tone. "Why don't you leave? You know what to do."

"Master..." Leliel said in a low voice, "Are you sure to let me do this?"

"Of course. I'm giving you a chance to prove your loyalty to _one of us_." Salem smiled.

"I might become your enemy, master..." She said, hesitating.

"And what of it? My victory is already assured, with _or_ without you. If you wish to remain by my side, I'll praise you for your wisdom. Even if you wish to become an enemy, it's your choice to make, and I'll praise you for your courage."

The Angel was silent for a moment.

"...Truly, you are kind, even if you say otherwise."

The Angel looked up to meet the Witch's gaze. Black and red met white and silver.

Salem smiled as the sight of her Angel's eyes. It was a gift of hers, a pair of eyes with silver irises, designed to fit into a human-sized doll.

Fitting, considering her Angel _is_ her doll.

"I am kind?" Salem's irises radiated crimson.

"You sure know how to amuse me."

* * *

The world was red.

It was within the forest of eternal autumn. The Forever Fall.

Standing by the cliffside in the midst of the forest, a little black riding hood was having a private concert.

"We were so close together, but the twilight is of different colors now..." Leliel sang softly, as she strummed her black lyre gently.

Five years.

It had been five years since her master released her from the chamber of deep abyss.

 _Five years had passed since the 'Promised Time'..._

 _And I haven't found my answer._

Nothing had changed. Not her body, and not her soul.

Her time was still frozen.

Leliel stopped strumming, and clenched her right hand.

The dark glove in her right hand was her master's parting gift. The accessory to tear a hole in time and space.

Its significance was clear to her. The gift was reminding her of one fact.

 _That I can return, anytime._

"Ah..."

Leliel heard something.

It was a continuous sound, one that was produced by something moving at high speeds on top of a metal rail.

 _What was it called again? A train, was it?_

Putting her Nocturne on her back, the little girl grabbed the handles at each side of her Wings of Thorns, and widened her arms.

As her cloak -her wings- were spread, its features was seen clearly. Like its name, the edges of Wings of Thorns were rigid and sharp, formed like blades. And like its name, it carried Dust. _Lots_ of them.

"There it is~"

Leliel jumped off the cliff, and with her wings spread... she remained airborne.

She flew.

Setting her unseeing sight on the incoming train, the angel flew right above the vehicle.

Preparing to land, Leliel slowly lowered her altitude until her feet could touch the train's floor. Right after, she let go of her cloak, and landed safely on one of the train's flatcars.

Sensing her surroundings through the vibration of her stomp, the eyeless Angel recognized some humanoid metals moving.

 _Hmm... what was the name of these things again?_

As a large number of robots came out from the freight cars behind and in front of her, one of the robots in front of her activated the guns on its arms.

"Intruder. Identify yourself."

Leliel smirked in response.

Activating the Dusts on her Wings, the Wings of Thorns radiated with black light.

"An Angel."

Channeling the energy to the blades of the Wings, the Angel twirled and fired two crescent-shaped energy waves -one to the front and one to the back- bisecting any robots on their paths.

Taking advantage of the robots' slow response, she ran toward the freight car ahead, and twirled and crouched several times as she went past the robots -slicing them right, left, and center- before reaching the connector between the cars.

Which she quickly cut off, before jumping onto the rooftop of the freight car in front of her.

As most of the robots were left behind along with the flatcar behind her, Leliel whispered.

"Be safe..."

She turned and ran along the roof of the cargoes, passing through six freight cars before jumping onto another flatcar.

As she felt more robots rising out from their slumber there, Leliel smiled.

"Let's dance!"

The girl bisected the first robot that tried to attack her with her right Wing, before twirling and sliced another two behind her back with her Wings' swipe. After she turned, the Angel released another energy wave with her left Wing, destroying a group of robots stacked together ahead of her.

As two remaining robots with guns fired at her from a distance, Leliel covered her body with her Wings, stopping all the bullets from hitting her. As soon as the barrage stopped, she charged her blades once more and sent another energy arc- destroying the two shooters and proceeded to move forward.

As the Angel entered another freight car, within it, a large, spider-like drone climbed from the ceiling of the car, ready to fight her.

"Oh."

As the spider drone fired several beams at her, the girl dodged the various shots by zig-zagging toward the large robot.

"Let's see how tough you are..."

Leliel proceeded to quickly circle around the droid and slashed at its four legs, but it didn't seem to be damaged at the slightest.

 _Tough._

The little girl retreated, and charged her blades to burst open the now-locked door of the freight car, returning to the flatcar she came from.

"Eh?"

Leliel stood still as she sensed two people in front of her.

"Huh?" A male voice uttered.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Another, more feminine voice, asked.

Leliel's eyes widened in surprise as the two voices allowed her to examine the two people in front of her.

It was Adam Taurus and his pupil.

Leliel chuckled at that. That was good. _You spared me the effort looking for you._

Adam spoke. "Were you responsible for cutting off those cars behind?"

Before she could answer, the spider droid entered the flatcar and fired a beam at them, forcing the three to jump in separate directions to dodge.

That ticked the Angel off.

 _Huh, these things do not know manners, do they?_

Leliel decided to activate a different Dust from the one she had used earlier. She had been using the standard White Dust -the one used for most bullets since it creates energy beams- and the most common artificial Dust type.

 _How about something more natural?_ Leliel smirked as her cloak radiated with darkness once more.

Activating Wind Dust this time, Leliel leaped high into the air, spread her Wings, and quickly dashed twice -once to pass over the robot, the second toward the floor- landing behind the robot.

"I hope you enjoyed your ride, since you are about to end it!"

Leliel twirled as she released a large gust of wind, blowing the spided droid _off the train_ , and into the abyss below.

Satisfied at the droid's doom, the Angel turned around again, facing her targets.

"I'm sorry for the intrusion... where were we?"

Leliel wasn't able to see their expressions, but judging from their silence it was clear that the two faunus in front of her were cautious of her.

"Who the hell are you?" Adam asked with a threatening tone.

"You are curious?" Leliel asked back with a neutral tone. "I thought you were much more aggressive than that, Adam Taurus."

"You... are you another human who wanted to recruit me?" Adam's voice sounded more annoyed this time.

That received Leliel's attention. _Another?_ She raised a brow.

That meant Cinder had come to them... _Did he say, tried? That meant Cinder hasn't acquired the Fall Maiden's power yet..._ Otherwise the White Fang would have submitted to her will.

 _Heh..._

"You don't know me," Leliel frowned, "and yet you said that I'm a human? I must say that I'm quite offended."

The two faunus seemed to be surprised. Leliel didn't know, if they didn't gasp, she wouldn't know.

"What? Are you a faunus?" The girl asked, this time.

"I wonder what's wrong with all of you," The Angel chuckled, "did you think that this world revolves around you, humans and faunus?"

 _Well, it kinda does, but not in the way you are thinking._

The Angel charged her blades with White Dust once more, and slashed.

"Ack!"

"Ahhhh!"

Leliel smirked as she heard the sounds of a broken mask, and a scream.

* * *

Adam was caught off-guard.

"Ack!" His right hand instinctively held his face. His mask was destroyed.

 _How did she?!_ Adam widened his now exposed eyes for a moment, before throwing a glare at the little, cloaked girl in front of her.

"Ahhhh!"

Adam twitched. _That was Blake's scream!_ Reflexively, he turned to his pupil.

Blake's head were bleeding. Her bow was gone. _Did she attack her, too!?_

"Oh," The cloaked girl giggled, "I missed."

Adam focused on the girl in front of her. Her stance suggested that she just slashed... twice.

He let his guard down. She released Dust in her cloak for a ranged attack while disguising it with melee stance. Just like himself with his Wilt.

 _Bitch!_

Adam unsheathed his Wilt and slashed twice to release Dust waves at the girl, but she blocked it by covering herself with her cloak.

"...Predictable, Adam." She said, sweeping her cloak to the side. "It seems anger actually makes you weak."

Although Adam was pissed, he knew that this little bitch was right. Knowing that, Adam calmed down, and assumed his normal fighting stance.

"Come, midget." Adam taunted.

"Ha ha ha," She laughed. "I would take that as a compliment. But I'm not here to fight you."

Adam could feel his anger leaking. "You said that after you attacked us!?"

"That's because I'm not here to talk, either." Her tone became dangerously low. "That, was what I call a warning."

"Warning?" Adam raised his brows.

"Leave the White Fang."

* * *

"What?" Adam and Blake's voice became one.

Did she hear that right? This little girl... just asked her to leave the White Fang? Something she wanted to do? Blake wasn't sure she heard that right, as she was holding her wounded head. It was fortunate the girl didn't cut her cat ears off.

"You were approached by a human, weren't you?" She asked.

"How is that any of your business?" Adam replied. _Damn it, Adam! We need to at least hear her first_.

Blake could tell how dangerous this girl was. Her weapon was unorthodox, and she was clearly a skilled Huntress. There was no way she could win against this little girl.

 _Maybe Adam could beat her, but if I'm here..._ The possibility of herself becoming a liability was high.

"It isn't my business," Her lips curved into a frown once more. "but it is yours. I'll tell you something... she will return, and she _will_ put you to become her slaves."

"What?" Blake was alarmed.

"Nonsense," Adam replied, "I could kill those three by myself. She couldn't possibly become strong enough to enslave us."

The girl giggled.

Blake shivered. The girl's laughter sent chills down her spine.

 _Are they even talking to a human?_

"That's only if she, was a normal human." The little girl continued.

She drew a black lyre out, much to Blake's surprise. _Is that another of her weapon?_

Suddenly, Blake could feel killing intent.

Knowing the source, Blake spoke. "Wait, Ada-"

The cat girl couldn't do anything as Adam charged forward and swung his sword at the little girl, who surprisingly blocked the strike by covering her body with her cloak, staring Adam down.

"Did you think I would let you?" Adam asked venomously.

"I did not." She replied cheekily.

That moment.

Blake wanted to throw up.

* * *

"Argh!" Adam took a few steps back, rubbing his nose.

He felt like two hard objects just hit his face like a truck.

 _What did she shoot to my face?!_ Adam refocused forward.

"...What."

Adam widened his eyes in horror, seeing two bloody objects on the floor.

Eyeballs. Those were the projectiles that had hit his face.

 _The girl's eyes._

As Adam's eyes trailed up, the girl was smiling at him- despite the fact that nothing remained in her empty sockets.

Smiling at him, the girl slowly opened the empty holes on her face, giggling as fresh blood trailed down her cheeks.

"Surprised?"

"Wh-what the... What are you...?!"

"I don't need to answer that, I guess."

And with those words, she strummed her lyre.

Silence fell upon them.

"RRRREEEEAAAAHHHHHHH"

A _massive_ Nevermore Grimm descended behind the girl.

"What the..." was all Adam could utter.

It was over twenty meters tall, and its wings clearly spread more than twice that length. Its dark feathers appeared dirty, worn out- signs of experience.

"Come, come, my dear~" The little girl said, in an unnerving sing-song voice.

The gigantic bird of prey stared down at him. It was not even looking at the girl underneath its legs.

 _Is she... commanding it!? That lyre... she used the lyre to call it?!_

As Adam froze in disbelief over what he just saw, the girl continued as she casually picked up her eyes, and plucked them back to her empty sockets.

"Don't be surprised. This is just the _surface_ of what that woman could do."

 _What? Controlling the_ very creatures of darkness _was just the surface?_ Adam almost couldn't believe his ears.

"Now, I'm asking you... would you stay in the White Fang, after knowing who would command you... and what things she could do?"

* * *

Blake was terrified.

How could she not? In front of her, a demon clad in the form of a little girl was displaying a power that only the ultimate nightmare should possess.

 _And to think, that the White Fang would be controlled by someone with this kind of power..._ Blake couldn't imagine that.

 _Could she run away?_

She was planning to do so- this mission was supposed to be the perfect time for her to escape from the White Fang.

But-

"No."

Adam, and the demon too, seemed surprised.

"We won't run."

"Blake?" She didn't respond to her mentor's call.

"We won't let our brothers suffer under someone with this kind of power."

Blake knew it was foolish. It would be best to just leave with Adam.

Everything was easy if you ran.

"We will not submit."

"Blake!"

Blake realized that Adam's eyes were on her. Even without contact, she already knew what he was about to say.

But she wouldn't run. She wouldn't let the White Fang be tainted further than it already was.

"Courageous..."

The two faunus became silent as the demon suddenly spoke.

"Interesting. You will fight for your freedom?" She asked, amusement clear in her tone.

"That's what we have done since the White Fang was formed." Blake replied without thinking.

"Even though you know you will die?"

"We will save ourselves, even if we have to die trying."

The demon laughed. Blake twitched at that.

"Ha ha ha...! They... they actually thought that they could make a difference!" She commented.

Blake wanted to say something. This girl was insulting the White Fang. The ideals of faunus.

If it was anyone else, Blake was sure her mentor would have her head.

That made her next words all the more unbelievable.

"Very well. Then I'll help you."

"Eh?"

The huge Nevermore behind her suddenly flew away.

"Huh?" Blake let out.

"I'll have my _dear_ destroy this train, along with all the Dust within. I suggest you, should escape." The demon said, spreading her wings.

"What? Why?" Adam asked.

The demon chuckled. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

She proceeded to jump high, and with her wings she left them.

True to her word, the Nevermore returned at them, practically _diving_ toward the train, aiming at the freight cars in front of them.

Blake's instincts flared. "Adam!"

"I know!"

The two faunus jumped together, and after reaching the highest height they could reach, Adam threw Blake further to reach the top of the cliffside.

As Blake landed, the law of inertia caused her to be thrown at the direction of the train's acceleration, forcing her to plant her sheath-sword on the ground to decelerate.

Blake watched as Adam drew Wilt from Blush, and used Blush's recoil to push him forward, allowing him to land on the top of the cliffside. He then planted his sword on the ground to slow down as well.

"Nice throw, by the way." Blake smiled.

"I try." Adam chuckled.

"RRRREEEEAAAAHHHH"

The two of them winced at the loud noise, as the Nevermore kamikazed toward the train, activating the Dust stored within the cargo, causing a chain reaction that completely destroyed the train.

* * *

Soaring in the skies above the Forever Fall, the dark angel flew away victoriously.

Leliel was satisifed. Her plan was not working the way she had expected.

It actually went _better_.

" _We won't let our brothers suffer under someone with this kind of power."_

" _We will save ourselves, even if we have to die trying."_

"Ha ha ha. Such an answer." Leliel giggled as she recalled the young faunus' answer.

She had to thank that girl. Her answer was the first step.

That was the first step toward the answer she was seeking for.

* * *

 **And there you go! All done! What do you think? Express your thoughts in your reviews~**

 **I think it's obvious at this point, but I'll say it regardless. Yes, in this story,** _ **Blake didn't betray the White Fang**_ **. There's some possibility of Adam x Blake, but I'll consider that for later.**

 **If you think that Leliel is too OP, don't worry... in terms of strength and skill, she is 'only' about an experienced hunter's level. Yes, in a straight fight, Leliel is only about as good as the likes of Qrow, Winter or Adam. It's just she can control the Grimm, like Cinder. That changes everything.**

 **Thank you for reading... but before I forget, I would announce a poll regarding this story.**

 **Leliel is a person. Not human, not faunus, but a person regardless.**

 **And it is only fitting that she will have someone to be paired with.**

 **You know where this is going. I'm going to ask your opinion, regarding who should become Liel's target of affection in this OC-oriented story. You may vote for ANYONE and for _more than one person_ , and I WILL still be able to manage the story regardless.**

 **Don't believe me? Why don't you vote for your favorite character and I'll show you how?**

 **Note: The song used was "We were so close together, but..." by Rie Tanaka.**


	2. Phantom Sights

**A/N: Hello again, my readers. Time for an update!**

 **I'm surprised that someone actually voted already for the poll. Even though I challenged you to vote in the first chapter, I didn't mean to actually do it** _ **now**_ **... I mean, you haven't even known Liel's personality yet.**

 **Regardless- I'll respond to the reviews:**

 **Osheana259: I think I made myself clear by saying that I dislike OCs. The only reason why Leliel is even the main character is because this story is about her. I'll consider it though, and I'll take your review as +1 for OC in the poll.**

 **XxxCrimsonSnow: Although I appreciate how you like my OC so far... I need you to comment on the story as well, Crim. Make sure of that next time~**

 **Guest: Pretty optimistic, aren't you? Too bad you are in for a surprise...**

 **Lonessa 8D: I was expecting the readers to be thrown off by Liel's actions, she was designed to be unnerving and unnatural, after all. And yes, I love to pair Adam with someone of the younger generations. Anyway, I'll take your vote as +1 for Merc and Neptune!**

 **Malfre C: Something tells me that you dislike description paragraphs. Oh, and yes, Leliel Blith is a Meaningful Name, check out my profile and you'll find out about it. About the Black Trailer, why yes, it just has a lot of potential to go wrong (and be used for fan fic). Liel IS supposed to be difficult (but not impossible) to predict, so good for me. Thanks for the song, haven't listened to it though.**

 **Telstra Roensell: You are the first one to** _ **ever**_ **comment negatively on me so thanks! Monty seemed to like us to analyze and focus into the subtleties of his stories, I do not know whether or not I'm actually copying that, though. Your comment about deconstruction has nothing to do with this story, though. I haven't added elements of that yet.**

 **Now that's over with, time for the next chapter, "Phantom Sights"**

* * *

Leliel was pissed.

A few meters ahead of her, the dreaded huntsman of Ozpin's -Qrow Branwen- was holding the body of a woman, probably the Fall Maiden, Amber. A white horse, probably belonging to the Maiden, also stood by their side.

There was only one conclusion she could come up with. _Cinder had taken the Maiden's powers_. Probably not all, judging from the Maiden's uneven breathing -which indicated that she was still alive- but that was still enough to subjugate the White Fang.

 _I was late..._

Leliel's original plan was to save Adam Taurus and his best subordinates from Cinder's clutches, help them escape to Mistral, and inform the White Fang's true leader about the threat.

That would allow the Angel to insert herself within the global body of the White Fang, while still granting Cinder -who was her ally, for now- the army she needed.

Although unlikely to convince Adam to work with her, it didn't matter as her actions would at least pique the interest of the mysterious leader -whom she knew, anyway- and that was good for her to establish further connections.

 _That's how it was supposed to be..._

But because of her conversation with Adam and his pupil a few hours ago, the possibility of establishing connections with the White Fang forces in Vale _now_ was not low. The way it was, Leliel could actually personally relate to Adam himself and his subordinates.

 _They could actually become my allies, not just pawns..._

That way she could take control the White Fang forces in Vale for Cinder's plan, _and_ establish a sure way to contact the White Fang leader for her own plan. That was what Leliel wanted to tell the fellow Salem apprentice.

But she had taken the Maiden powers now. _And that overconfident bitch would definitely refuse my way of doing things!_

That control freak hated the term 'allies'. She thought of herself as a queen. One that didn't need 'allies', only 'pawns'. Cinder wouldn't even dream of allying herself with the White Fang once she had the powers to just take control of them.

"Huh..." She scoffed. _What does she think she is? She is just another pawn..._

Leliel could just murder Cinder and proceeded it her way. But opposing her, no... opposing _her master_ now was not wise. The Angel was not yet prepared to fall from her grace.

 _There isn't an option here... I'll just have to move forward with the plan_. Hopefully Adam would be smart enough to move his forces and escape.

The Angel gritted her teeth. It was _frustrating_. When she couldn't take the most efficient method possible... it was annoying as all hell.

Leliel was lucky she had her hood on... otherwise the huntsman and the horse in front of her would notice her radiating eye-sockets, courtesy of her Semblance.

Why was her Semblance active? Because she was _enraged_.

 _I hope you don't disappoint me, old man..._ Leliel took a deep breath, calming down her emotions and deactivating her Semblance.

"Qrow Branwen..."

* * *

"Huh?"

Qrow turned over his head over his shoulder. About twenty meters away behind him, someone -who was not there before- called his full name.

The man frowned as he set his sights on the girl. She appeared suspiciously similar to one of his two nieces. Clad in a black, hooded cloak, and sounding like a young girl. Barely in her teenage years as well, he supposed.

"Who are you, kid? How do you know my name?" The scarecrow asked.

In response, the black riding hood took off her hood.

Qrow widened his eyes. The girl's face looked somewhat like Ruby... and Summer when she was younger. She even had silver eyes. _How? After Summer, Ruby should be the only one with those..._

He didn't have any time to think further as the little girl continued.

"You'll know how. And I will also tell you who I am... but not here. I'll do it in front of your boss."

Qrow was instantly alarmed. The man turned turned around and faced the girl.

"Do you even know who my boss is?" He frowned.

The girl in front of him only raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"Why are you so secretive about his identity? It's obviously Ozpin." She replied nonchalantly.

 _So she knows._ Qrow narrowed his eyes.

Ozpin's conspiracy consisted of the leaders of academies and the few huntsmen that were carefully selected by Ozpin. Any additions of new members needed an universal agreement from all of the circle.

So if Qrow didn't recognize her on sight, that meant the girl was not part of Ozpin's circle. And to know not just Ozpin, but also himself, meant that she was not just a pawn... but an _actual enemy_.

The old crow gently put the Fall Maiden's body on her horse's back, before speaking to the ride.

"Hush. Go away with your owner. I can find you later."

As the horse complied and ran off, he turned to the girl once more.

"Listen, kid. I don't know what you want with Oz, but if you are working for the Queen, I advise you should stay put and let me arrest you _now_." Qrow said threateningly.

 _You can talk with Oz after that, for interrogation._

Much to his annoyance however, the girl didn't even flinch at his threat.

"Or you will...?" She replied in a mocking tone.

"I will still arrest you. Maybe with a few broken bones, though." He finished.

The girl burst out in laughter. Qrow could feel his patience thinning at that.

"What's so funny?"

"Heh heh heh! Why should we fight, Qrow? I wish only to talk with Ozpin."

"Then shut up and put down your weapons. Did you really think I will bring you to Ozpin just like that?"

"Of course I do. After all, you are a huntsman and his trusted confidant. Not a brute."

"That's nice for you to say, but it's our job to hunt people like _you_." Qrow's patience was at its limit.

The girl smirked. "So you are saying... I have to let myself be captured to speak with a headmaster of a combat academy. Isn't that illegal?"

"Quit the chatter," Qrow grabbed the hilt of his sword, "and decide. Do you want this to end peacefully, or not?"

"I don't want this to end, if I'm being honest." She chuckled.

The girl's cloak radiated with darkness, and released a cloud of bright orange- Volcanic Dust.

Qrow watched in surprise as the released Dust slowly transformed into a black, curved sword made from obsidian glass.

Immediately recognizing the blade as a katana, the gleaming black blade's length was about half as long as the girl was tall. Considering she was as tall as Ruby, the blade was nearly 80 cm.

 _What? Did she just create a sword from Dust?_

That was not something you saw everyday. Dust were extremely difficult to manipulate with Aura, so to _produce_ a weapon made from Dust or their residue without using some sort of weapon mechanism practically needed telekinetic Semblance... or a Maiden's powers.

If this girl was actually a Maiden... he wouldn't stand a chance.

 _The key word there was 'if'._ Qrow readied the greatsword in his right hand. Still a theory.

"Let me tell you something, Qrow. In this situation, you are incapable of defeating me. I'll comply if you want to stop." She said cheekily.

"We'll see about that. Come, kid." Qrow replied in a challenging tone.

He watched as the little girl wielded her katana's hilt in both of her hands at her side, ready to thrust forward.

 _It's practically telegraphed. This is not going to be difficult, then._ The experienced huntsman prepared to counter.

The next moment.

The blade's tip was inches away from his eyes.

Qrow widened his eyes and dodged at the last second, earning a cut on his right cheek in exchange.

 _Ow, hot, hot!_ The huntsman winced as his cheek was burnt by the volcanic sword.

The girl's speed was _far_ quicker than he had thought. _How did she move that quick?_

Qrow turned around quickly, and found as the girl was almost twenty meters behind him. Her cloak was still glowing black, and was windswept.

 _I see... so her cloak is a Multi-Dust Carrier Action Cloak._ It seemed to be equipped with blades throughout its edges, as well. Even though it belonged to the enemy, Qrow had to admit that the design was impressive.

That cloak was using Wind Dust. The girl was using wind gusts to accelerate her movements.

 _...Skilled._ He had to take back his earlier statement. This one was not going to be easy, indeed.

She didn't seem to be a Maiden, though. Those demi-goddesses wouldn't need a weapon that complicated.

"Hmm... as expected from Qrow Branwen. Not many can survive that blow without some serious injuries." She turned, grinning at him.

"Huh. So I am the first?" Qrow asked.

"Not exactly."

The girl ran toward him, to which Qrow responded by firing the shotguns on his sword at her. Unfortunately for the huntsman, the girl covered herself in her cloak and blocked the shot.

 _I see..._ Understanding the versatility of his opponent's weapon, the huntsman quickly closed in and slammed his sword at the black riding hood, but the girl only took a leap away to avoid the earth-shattering attack.

"...?"

 _That's weird._ When using her cloak for defense, she shouldn't be able to see him.

Mid-air, the girl spread her cloak and slashed her sword, sending a crescent-shaped wave of fire at him. Qrow dodged the attack and decided to return the favor by firing another shot at the girl.

However, despite landing with her back turned at him, the girl stepped to the side and avoided the attack completely. Again, without seeing at all.

"..."

Before Qrow could decide his next move, the girl again approached him at high speed and attacked him first with her katana, forcing Qrow to block it.

As their swords clashed, the huntsman could practically _feel_ the little girl's strength. For someone her size, matching him in a blade-lock was completely absurd.

 _Definitely not a normal girl._

As the two of them quickly retreated to regain their footing, the girl threw her sword at Qrow, forcing the huntsman to deflect it. The girl then used a blast of wind to propel herself forward, preparing to attack Qrow with the blades on her cloak.

 _Damn!_

He only managed block the consecutive attacks that followed afterward. As the girl slashed, swiped, twirled, and stabbed with her cloak's blades in rapid succession, the huntsman was slowly pushed back.

Qrow countered with a swing, but the girl only leaped and landed a kick square on his face, pushing him even further back.

"I told you, Qrow. My offer to stop this fight still stands." She said, smiling.

The girl then took a leap back, and picked up her dropped sword.

Qrow only glared at the little girl as his sword's gears began to move, transforming the weapon into its scythe form.

"Humph. This is just the beginning."

As the shotgun barrels on the scythe rotated to face upward, Qrow wielded the scythe over his shoulder and fired, propelling him toward the girl.

The girl leaped high to avoid his assault, and Qrow watched as the girl swung her sword downward to send another wave of fire his way.

Smirking, the scythe-wielder countered the blast with a swing of his weapon. With the rotating shotguns' powerful recoil and his own immense strength, the force of his swing was able to _slice the fire storm_ in half, hitting the ground to his sides.

As the girl landed a few meters behind him, both of them turned around and fired at one another with a shotgun blast and fiery wave respectively. As the projectiles clashed, the subsequent explosion prevented Qrow from seeing his target.

Qrow readied his scythe, already expecting the vicious little girl to continue her assault, but surprisingly, as the dust from the explosion settled, the girl didn't make a move.

The huntsman was a bit surprised. The girl was able to strike him without seeing and without giving him any chance to catch his breath. Why did she suddenly stop?

 _...Oh, I see._

This little girl didn't use her eyes. She was using echolocation. That explained everything. She didn't see his attacks coming- she heard it coming.

The explosion just now had blinded her, if only momentarily. Echolocation could only be disturbed by a sudden and significant change in frequency or volume of sounds.

Qrow had to admit, he was pleasantly surprised. Aura can enhance one's senses, some crazier than others. Blind huntsmen and huntresses were rare, but not unheard of, and this was the first time he ever faced one down in a battle.

Then the silver eyes must be fake. _Damn, they are very convincing._

The huntsman smirked. "Are you blind, little kid?"

If the girl was surprised, her expression didn't show any signs of it.

"...It's that obvious, huh?"

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not mocking you here." Qrow said honestly. "You must be a damn good huntress to be able to fight with just hearing alone."

"Are you trying to flatter me?" She asked with a neutral tone. "You are not going to continue fighting?"

"Let me tell you something," Qrow chuckled at the ironic echo, "if you are relying on echolocation to sense me, then I can stomp on you flat. Give up now."

 _With my power, that is._

Much to Qrow's surprise, the girl actually widened her unseeing, yet expressive eyes- _She was curious_.

"Can you really?"

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

The huntsman leaped, and in that instant, his human form disappeared.

As he transformed into a crow, Qrow flew toward his target.

For some reason, the girl didn't respond to him at all.

 _That's only logical._ When he morphed into his crow form, Qrow could manipulate his Aura to minimize the sound he produced. In other words, he was almost completely silent when he became a crow. That way she wouldn't be able to see him coming.

Even if she tried to speak or produce other sounds to detect him, his small size would slow down the girl's reaction time, while Qrow was an _incredibly_ fast bird. He could reach the girl before she could react, then transform back and kick her ass.

Which was exactly what he was doing now.

Transforming back into his human form right in front of his target, the girl only managed to gasp in surprise and covered herself in her cloak as Qrow swiped her aside with his scythe, knocking her off her feet and throwing her several meters away.

"Arrgghhh!" The girl winced as she hit the ground.

"How's that? Still want to continue fighting?" Qrow asked.

Contrary to his expectations, the girl slowly stood back up.

"Heh... that was painful, Qrow. Did you travel through space or something?" She asked, smiling.

"Not even close," Qrow chuckled. "and answer me, before I actually break your bones."

"I said it, Qrow. In this situation, it's impossible for you defeat me." She said, sounding even more confident this time.

Qrow began to lose his patience. "Very well then. You leave me with no choice, kid."

As the girl charged at him, Qrow only took a leap backwards before transforming into a crow.

 _I guess I'll end this now._ The crow flew upward, before performing a 180-degree turn and dived downward, gathering momentum for one, last scythe slash.

However, what Qrow saw the next moment completely destroyed any sense of security he had.

The girl chased him down. With her cloak spread like wings, and a sword in her left hand.

Her silver eyes were gone- replaced by a deep, glowing purple irises.

 _What!?_

Qrow immediately transformed back into human form and used his scythe to block the girl's sword, but the force of her swing threw him to the ground.

Forced to drag his scythe on the ground to slow down to a stop, Qrow watched as the little girl landed on the ground gracefully.

 _How?_ The huntsman had predicted that the girl's cloak could achieve flight, But there was no way she could chase him like that, especially with her echolocation rendered ineffective.

Qrow examined his opponent once more. However, this time, the girl's eyes actually returned his gaze- and she smiled at him.

The huntsman connected the dots. "...You can see me."

"Considering you are kind enough to show me your power... perhaps I'll repay your kindness." The black riding hood replied cheerfully.

The girl pointed her katana at him.

"I call my Semblance 'Phantom Sight'. I can't see a thing without it... but I can see _everything_ with it."

Qrow raised a brow. "Everything?"

"Hmm..."

The girl turned at the forest at their side.

"It seems that horse isn't too far away..."

The intelligent scarecrow widened his eyes. "What the-"

The girl ignored him and leaped high, spread her wings, and flew toward the forest.

 _Oh goodness gracious fuck!_ Qrow transformed into a crow and pursued the girl.

 _The Maiden!_

* * *

"Heh..." Leliel chuckled, seeing the futile efforts the little bird was doing behind her.

He was hoping to stop her from reaching the Maiden... obviously, he would fail. She would reach her first, considering their roughly equal speed.

 _Too bad we have to end this now..._ The Angel lamented.

The fight was more amusing than she had expected, Qrow Branwen was definitely one of the strongest huntsman she had faced yet.

Heck, she even had to use her Semblance. Phantom Sight was not a particularly powerful Semblance, but it was more than just an ability for her. It allowed her to enjoy the most joyous moments in her life- to be able to see.

It was almost dream-like... it's almost as if she had a second pair of eyes, one that could travel around her without being inhibited by physical space, and see through everything in its phantasmal sight.

The effects? No one would be able to catch her off-guard when it was active. And _no one ever escaped her_ once she used them.

 _It had been such a long time since I used this against someone strong_...who was it last time? Was it her dear _sister_? But she knew her sister was tough. That was totally expected _... she shouldn't count. Hmm..._

"Oh, there it is."

The Angel descended upon the forest, and landed on the running white horse's head, causing it to shriek in surprise.

Setting her sights on the comatose body of the Fall Maiden, Leliel grabbed her by the neck and leaped off the horse, holding the Maiden down on the ground as she put her sword on her neck.

Leliel watched as the pursuing crow turned into his human form and landed on the ground.

"...Little bitch." He cursed.

Leliel smirked in response. "I told you from the very beginning that in this situation, you can't defeat me. Did you really think I was overconfident?"

"Kuh..." He scoffed.

"Now, will you take me to Ozpin? Unless you want this woman to die, that is."

Qrow turned his gaze to the comatose Amber in her hands, frowned, and glared at her once more.

"...You will regret this."

"Oh," Leliel snickered, "We'll see about that."

* * *

 **And... done! Sorry, it actually took me a week to finish chapter 2. How do you think? Please review~**

 **I still don't expect any of you to actually vote, considering only about 10% of Liel's personality is revealed at this point. But if you want to vote regardless, I'm not stopping you.**

 **I probably need to say, in the last A/N I said you may vote for more than one person, its meaning goes both ways: You can vote for more than one character, _and_ you can vote for a threesome. Or foursome. Or some-some.**

 **I would prefer it to be someone outside of OCs, team RWBY, and Adam though, if possible... but if you wanted to vote for either, I won't stop you. This fic's purpose is to hone my skills, after all.**

 **Thank you for following the developments of "Nightmare Angel" so far!**

 **Note: No song for this chapter.**


	3. Reunion of Night: The Dark Embrace

**A/N: Salutations, my readers! I'm here for the next chappie!**

 **I was about to update "Bring it on, our Destiny" when a large amount of encouraging reviews convinced me to do otherwise! If so much of you are this curious about the next chapter, I might as well answer your curiosity. (Sorry for those who followed my Adam x Weiss story, by the way, I'm supposed to post that today... but this changed my plans.)**

 **Let's begin with the reviews...**

 **Osheana259: No need to be sorry, Internet has the unspoken law of freedom of expression. I'm going to answer your questions~**

 **For the first question, it will be answered in this chapter. About Blake disguising herself as the member of White Fang, yes, yes she will. She will use her alternate outfit, plus the Grimm mask. And do not worry, I do intend this to be a Tauradonna. About Leliel joining it... I will take that as +1 for both Adam and Blake, I guess.**

 **As for who will replace B of the RWBY... it's gonna be answered in the next chapter.**

 **VariousStories: And I'm pleasantly surprised that someone actually praises me this much. Too bad, there will be absolutely no gorey details in this chapter, since it will be far,** _ **far**_ **more plot-focused. I'll probably edit that detail in the first chapter later, though.**

 **As for unique technique for Leliel, it's quite risky, since adding too much will give the impression of her being too OP as well as inserting one of the things I hate the most about a story: New Powers as the Plot Demands. Fuck. That.**

 **Let's list Leliel's abilities now; Her Wings of Thorns allows Leliel to excel in both melee and long range thanks to Dust, as well as achieving flight. That alone kinda puts average weapons to shame, quality-wise.**

 **While she is blind, she is capable of echolocation, catching her off-guard is difficult without silent attacks or sound disturbances to 'blind' her. And yet her Semblance allows her to see anything coming, and renders those weaknesses moot.**

 **The girl can also manipulate Dust like Cinder, forming physical weapons out of Dust residue (not just limited to Volcanic!). And if that isn't enough, by playing her lyre, Nocturne, she can control the Grimm.**

 **In short, she is powerful enough that nothing short of Ozpin and fully-powered Maidens can take her down easily. That's borderline overpowered. Still, she does have more secrets up her sleeve, although revealing those abilities wouldn't make her any stronger than she is right now. At least, not significantly so.**

 **Btw, your words imply +1 for both Mercury and Adam. Hmm. And thank you for your generous review... again.**

 **Telstra Roensell: You need a freakin' drink. Reading 12 volumes of light novels tire you? Then you should practice more. Btw, did you forget the setting of Cinder's attack on Amber? But that's a valid point, this is a narration story, it should have more narrations. I'll add more details next time, for the battles as well. Don't ask for the impossible though.**

 **HAPPYHAPPY: Your review is exactly the same on another guest who reviewed chapter 1... do not worry, chapter 2 and this chapter will completely answer your question.**

 **RY: Wondering who Leliel is, huh? This chapter will drop hints about it. By the way, your point is perfectly valid... just read this chapter. About whether or not Leliel will actually help Cinder is another matter, though.**

 **Lonessa 8D: Qrow is well-known for his capacity to make us laugh with his one-liner snark comments. So I have to live up to the expectations. Btw, thanks for your generous comment. Hopefully we can write together again soon, and I'm completely fine with helping you!**

 **Now that's done, I'll drop a few notice. The title of this chapter is "Reunion of Night: The Dark Embrace". Any chapters with the word 'Night' in its title will be longer than any other chapters, so I hope you don't mind chapters with 7000 words** _ **at the very**_ _ **least**_ **.**

 **This is a warning, and also a sign- Night chapters will always feature far more POVs than any other; and will always, always drop clues about, and later, an insight into, Leliel's nature and origin.**

 **Why am I doing this? This is another writing style of mine. I love to notify my readers when to be alarmed, for them to prepare themselves... only for me to still surprise them, regardless. Don't like it? Sorry... but I can't stress this enough: this story's entire purpose is to hone my skills, test Leliel's personality, and amuse readers who are willing to read. This is my way for training myself.**

 **Btw, I'm out of my early college hell... but it's not college if it doesn't have an insane amount of assignments. And thanks to that, I think this will be the last time I update so quickly. I will probably be able to update chapters in 2-4 weeks, from now on.**

 **Sorry for this long A/N, but the story** _ **is**_ **still in its early chapters, so long notes are the norm. Anyway, let's proceed forward with the story.**

* * *

It was morning. The sun had just risen, sending its light over the horizon.

The beginning of morning was usually the calmest moments of a day. That stayed true even for places of wild, like the Forever Fall forest.

However, for a certain group of faunus within the forest, it was a busy morning.

"Do not waste any second, brothers!"

"Yes, sir!"

As the White Fang soldiers saluted at him and ran along, Adam glanced around. Scanning the forest around him closely.

He couldn't let his guard down. An enemy, more dangerous than anything he had ever known, could be returning anytime soon.

That woman who visited him last night -Cinder, if his memory served- had to be avoided. If the words of that little girl on the train were anything to go by, she was dangerous beyond belief.

"..."

Adam wasn't foolish enough not to believe her after he had seen what she could do. The girl was a very skilled huntress- he let his guard down for a second, and she immediately attacked him and Blake.

The redhead scoffed as he held his new mask. It was irritating. The new sensation reminded him of the fact that the girl managed to destroy his mask- and injured Blake. But all of those were nothing compared to the next things she had shown.

 _Defying gravity and fly. Using your very eyes as projectiles. Manipulating the Grimm._

Nothing in this world should be able to do any of those. If it wasn't a demon, then she would be a very dangerous huntress, with lots and _lots_ of tricks up her sleeve.

Regardless- he had to act. The White Fang must not be subjugated by anyone -or anything- with that kind of power. Blake was right. They shouldn't escape from the Fang- _the Fang_ should escape now.

 _I hope we are not too late..._ Adam turned to another group of his men.

"Are we ready to transport our forces now?" The commander asked.

"Yes, sir. What about yourself, Commander? Lieutenant and Belladonna too?" One of them asked back.

"Don't worry about us."

Adam and the White Fang soldiers turned their attentions to the feminine voice behind the bull.

It was a girl clad in black-and-white, with cat-like mannerisms. His pupil, and his partner. Blake.

"We will go after you." She continued.

"But-"

"Listen to her," Adam interjected, "we know what are we doing. Have faith in us."

The commander and the soldier stared into the the masks of the other. For a moment there was silence.

"...Yes sir."

"Good. Now leave."

As the soldiers saluted and subsequently left them, Adam turned to Blake.

His eyes were on his partner's head, now covered with bandages to cover her slashed head.

"How do you feel?" Adam asked, with much softer tone than earlier.

Blake frowned slightly as she rolled her eyes.

"That's the third time you asked this morning, Adam. I'm fine, really. Don't worry." Blake said, irritated.

Without warning, the bull moved his hand to the cat's cheek, causing her to widen her eyes in surprise.

"Adam?"

"I'm glad you are okay."

Blake's cheeks blushed faintly, causing Adam to chuckle.

If Adam had to list every good thing about Blake, he was sure the list would number in the _thousands_... but catching the sight of her blushing had to be one of the highest in the list.

However, his smile faded as he continued. "And I'm sorry, Blake."

The girl raised her eyebrow. "...What for?"

"For my failure." He replied.

Blake's lips instantly curved into a frown. "Adam, you didn't fail-"

"No, I did." He interjected and cut her off. "When we were confronted by that girl, I was dead-set on thinking about how to escape the Fang."

Blake was silenced. Adam continued.

"I was a failure. I was about to betray the White Fang the moment I faced terror. But instead, you decided to stay. You stood up to that girl. That meant you have what it takes to be a member of the Fang, Blake."

But honestly, Adam also felt happy from his heart. He was proud of his pupil's determination and dignity.

"You did great, my love."

Blake averted her gaze from him. He raised a brow at that.

"Adam, I..." She trailed off.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"...Never mind." Her eyes shifted back at him. "We will talk about this later. We have to get out of here."

The bull frowned slightly, but he knew she was right.

"Then let us waste no time."

* * *

Blake felt disgusted at herself.

She didn't deserve any of her mentor's praise just now.

" _You have what it takes to be a member of the Fang_."

That was wrong. She knew it was. She had been planning to betray the White Fang since a few weeks ago.

 _But why do you stay, then?_ Her own mind asked.

Blake wasn't sure, herself. Was it because she didn't want the White Fang to be tainted further? That didn't make sense. What could she do, anyway? So long as the new leader was around, the Fang would be free to continue being radical- being _monstrous_. Adam was the ultimate proof of that. She could change nothing.

 _...No._

That girl on the train had shown Blake. Her partner wasn't a monster -at least, not yet- and he had shown something Blake thought he had lost.

Love for her.

In the last five years, Adam had... changed. Not just in his methods. But in his... soul.

He used to express his emotions often. He used to laugh cheerfully with her when she made a silly mistake. He used to yell in anger and frustration when a protest failed. He used to cry and break down when one of their family died.

But then the leader was replaced, and promoted him to become a commander. He went to meet the mysterious leader for a few months of training. He returned stronger... and eerily calmer.

He stopped laughing, only smirking when something went his way. He stopped yelling, only calmly spewing words of pure hatred when angered. He stopped crying, only seeking revenge on humans when a member died.

Blake used to be the only one who could read him then. She knew what he was feeling, even when all others weren't able to tell. But that changed once he adorned that mask.

It terrified her. What happened to his feelings? Where did they go when he used that Grimm mask? She could neither feel them, nor tell what happened to them- they were suddenly _gone._

It began soon after. Deaths. First it was accidents. Then it was for self-defense. He would take off his mask, and told her not to worry. She believed in that. She thought he was right.

Then he started hitting her. He began to threaten his own underlings. She thought it was because of the stress caused by controlling his emotions too much, and he needed to vent it on others. That would be understandable.

But no- he continued to wear that mask. He continued his heartlessness. He said that he still cared, even if he didn't show it at times.

She trusted that. She wanted to. But after long, he stopped doing even that, and continued on. Yet still, she stayed. Maybe he had stopped loving her, because he had to concentrate on more pressing matters.

Sometimes love only caused problems, after all. Especially when you are living a life of fighting. It hurt, but that was fine. At the very least, he still had morals, and was fighting for the right thing.

If he went past that line, she would betray him. No questions asked.

"Blake?"

But he had shown it, once and for all- he still loved her. And more than that, he had no problems leaving the current, radical White Fang- meaning he was not completely swayed over by the extremities of the new leader. Yet.

"Hey, why are you... crying?"

Blake could still do something about it. Maybe she couldn't change the White Fang as a whole now... but she could still do something about her partner. Her lover.

"Blake!"

"Huh!?" Blake snapped back to reality- and quickly looked around.

Adam was beside her. They were inside their personal Bullhead, leaving their camp from their camp in the Forever Fall.

"Blake, what's wrong? Why the tears?" Adam asked, his voice dripping with concern.

"I..." Blake touched her own face. A single tear flowed down her cheek.

"If this has something to do with what you wanted to say earlier, then let's talk about it now." Adam said quickly.

"No." Blake wiped her tear clean and stood up from seat. "I said, we'll talk about this later. We have to discuss what to do next."

"She's right."

The two faunus turned to the door leading to the cockpit, from which the White Fang lieutenant entered their room.

"You have to explain why did we have to leave in such a hurry. Boss, Blake." The lieutenant said, clearly annoyed.

"Lieutenant," Adam sighed, "be patient. I have something to ask Blake."

"Your lovers' quarrel can settle for later." The two of them glared at him, but he ignored that. "Now, explain just what the hell did you both see that you actually thought that a whole battalion of our forces couldn't handle it." He growled.

"You-"

"Adam," Blake interjected. "He's right. We have to explain."

The redhead faunus only gave her a glare that screamed 'we _will_ talk about this later'. Blake agreed mentally.

"Fine. Let's start from the least insane first."

* * *

"There is no one here, ma'am!"

"No animals on sight."

Cinder frowned at the her two subordinates' report.

How was that possible? The White Fang forces were here in the Forever Fall, last night... they couldn't just up and disappear without reason.

What caused them to leave? A Grimm attack would pose no problem to a whole battalion of them, and even if there were enough attacks to force them to retreat, surely there must be signs of it. And there was none.

The most likely possibility was something urgent came up, and they had to leave to for it. But what? What could possibly be so important that one of its commander -Adam Taurus- had to personally leave? A call from their leader? One of their bases suffered an invasion by Hunters?

 _Che._ Whatever was it, it had ruined the plan. She needed an army, and currently the largest, illegal military force in Vale was the White Fang. If she couldn't secure them, the Vale invasion plan would suffer a huge setback.

 _Where and how I can get another army?_

Roman did have a few grunts, but that could hardly be called an army. She could command the Grimm, but they were only useful for destroying and killing, not to help Roman with the Dust thefts.

"What should we do now, ma'am?" Emerald asked with a concerned tone.

 _That's a good question,_ Cinder thought.

"Well... I suppose it can't be helped. We are properly equipped to subjugate them, not to search for them." The lady said in annoyance.

"Does that mean the plan will be delayed?" Mercury frowned slightly.

"Hardly." Cinder smiled. "We aren't out of options just yet."

"Huh? Do we?"

"We do. I don't like calling her for help, but I suppose we don't have a choice."

 _Leliel Blith..._

A living weapon of her master, known as the 'Nightmare Angel'. Not counting Ozpin, Leliel was one of the strongest huntress Cinder ever knew, and also one with the most connections in the underground.

Cinder scoffed at the thought of having to ask a favor from her, though. Serving under the same master didn't mean she had to like the enigmatic Angel.

Or rather, it was the opposite, if she was being honest. Cinder _wanted_ to respect her. The Angel was interesting, and she must be truly incredulous to be able to gain affections from Salem herself.

But for some reason, Leliel seemed to hate her... with passion. The Angel didn't let it show, and it didn't hamper their effectiveness when they had to work together. But the fact remained that the Angel disliked her for some reason.

 _Why though? It's irrational._ Even Cinder knew how ruthlessly efficient the Angel was. For Leliel to hate her without any apparent reason was... weird.

Whatever the reason, there was some chance that it was actually her who caused the White Fang to leave this place. That would be one way for the Angel to spite her.

If that was true, then there would be two possibilities. Either Leliel had taken control of the White Fang first, or she just forced them to leave this place.

It was disadvantageous for her either way. If it was the former, then Cinder would have to politely ask for her men. If it was the latter, then Cinder would still have to ask her to search for a new source of army.

 _I suppose I will meet her soon..._

* * *

"Now that's just plain insane." The lieutenant remarked.

He was conflicted. In one hand, he had faith in his boss. And anyway, Adam Taurus and his lover were the ultimate no-nonsense pair of all of White Fang. They couldn't be lying.

On the other hand, what they had said sounded like a really, really bad nightmare rather than reality. A hooded little girl capable of firing her eyes as projectiles and controlling the Grimm?

 _Sounds a twisted version of the Red Riding Hood... no, Black Riding Hood perhaps?_ He chuckled.

"I told you," Adam scowled, "you won't believe it unless you saw it yourself."

"Lieutenant," Blake said with a pleading tone, "we are not crazy. It's the truth."

"And how am I supposed to believe that? What you said just now sounded like a fairy tale gone horribly wrong." The full-masked faunus commented.

Adam only glared at him through his mask, while Blake looked defeated. The lieutenant simply shrugged. If they expected him to believe all of those then they were wrong. His loyalty was not to be taken lightly.

"Enough about that nonsense. Now we have to discuss our next course of action. Since we failed to secure Dust from the SDC, we will be running out of Dust in about two months."

"...I don't think we will be stealing Dust any time soon." Blake frowned.

"And would you care to explain why?" The lieutenant growled. "If this is related to-"

"She is right." Adam interjected. "We have to keep a low profile. We can't afford to be approached by that Cinder Fall again, or the other girl."

"Seriously?" The lieutenant said in disbelief. "We have to halt our operation just because of three people and a hallucination of yours?"

"She is not a hallucination, lieutenant." Adam argued, irritation clear in his tone. "What we saw were definitely real."

"Well," He could feel his annoyance leaking out, "why don't you try telling that to all of our troops? I'm sure they will believe you!" He continued sarcastically.

"What if we could prove it?"

The two masked men stared at the sole unmasked female in the room.

"Wait, what?" Adam asked in disbelief.

"And how do you expect to do that, Blake?" The lieutenant asked in a challenging tone.

"We will find that girl. And we will bring her here as proof." She answered.

"What?" Adam became alarmed. "Blake, that's impossible. How do we even find her? She can fly and control the Grimm! If she decides to enter the Grimmlands then we will never be able to find her!"

"But she said she will help us. That means she must be here, in this kingdom." Blake argued.

"Ha ha ha." The lieutenant couldn't help but restrain his laughter, interrupting the lovers. "So you really believe that what you saw were real. Did the idea of illusory Semblance cross your mind at all?"

"It's not, an illusion." The cat faunus stared daggers at him.

"Illusions couldn't destroy a train, anyway." The bull faunus frowned.

Hearing the logical argument, the lieutenant reconsidered the matter a bit. "Hmm... but it doesn't necessarily mean that the girl actually controlled the Grimm."

"Well, that's what we are about to prove." Blake stood up from her seat.

"All three of us will move by ourselves. We will investigate Vale, and look for her." She said with a firm tone.

"Wait, you are bringing me along?" The lieutenant asked.

The lieutenant was ignored as his boss voiced his opinion.

"Blake, I have to ask you this." Adam face-palmed. "You believe her when she said she will help us?"

"Why shouldn't we, Adam?" Blake asked back. "There is no reason for someone who has the power to simply subjugate the White Fang to lie to us."

"That doesn't mean-" Adam was cut off.

"I think I'll pass," The lieutenant interjected. "and please spare me from your lovely fight."

The two of them glared at him again. He shrugged and continued.

"How about this? We will lay low like you two wanted, but only for a month. If you manage to find this so-called Grimm tamer, we will listen to you. But if you can't prove this girl's existence, we will continue our operation. With, or without your agreement." The lieutenant proposed.

"What is this, lieutenant?" Adam said venomously. "You are going against my orders?"

"We will throw ourselves to a lake of fire if we have to," The lieutenant countered, "but not everyone here wanted to obey _you_ without a good reason, boss. One month is just my estimation. In reality, you might have less than a week to prove it."

There was silence for a moment.

"Can you keep the others from acting on their own during that one month?" Blake asked.

"If we are deal, I swear on my life that none of them will." The lieutenant saluted.

"...Deal, then." She accepted.

The redhead faunus turned to his lover.

"My goodness. You are serious about looking for her." Adam sighed.

"Well," Blake turned her gaze at him, "demon or not, I will make her keep her word."

* * *

The night had fallen upon Vale.

Despite its name, Beacon was very ominous looking during the night.

Even from the headmaster's office, situated at the top of the Beacon tower, which exhibited an impressive view of the whole academy, the school appeared little more than an abandoned ghost school at night.

Which made sense, since the curriculum hadn't started yet during this time of the year. The dormitories were more or less empty, only filled with second-years, third-years, and fourth-year students who didn't use their holiday to leave the academy.

For Ozpin the headmaster and Glynda Goodwitch the deputy headmistress though, leaving Beacon for holiday was unthinkable. They _needed_ to stay in their circle's headquarters, after all.

That being said, relaxing was not out of question. Even now, the white-haired headmaster was enjoying the view of his own academy while drinking a mug full of coffee. All while waiting for reports from his intel- Qrow Branwen.

"..."

To be honest, Ozpin didn't like it when Qrow sent messages. That meant he had obtained an important information- and that usually meant bad news.

He closed his eyes. Every time he looked at his scroll, it always reminded him of Qrow's worst message in the recent years.

'Summer died.'

Even now, Ozpin still felt the misery that he had caused.

Although he was quite sure he deserved it, Ozpin didn't quite feel the same for his underlings. The headmaster could only imagine what did Qrow feel when he had to notify him about her demise.

Especially when both men knew that _he_ was the one who sent _her_ , knowing that the huntress would die.

"...Hmm?"

He noticed a beep on his scroll. A message. From the dusty old crow.

 _...What a coincidence._ Ozpin mentally prepared himself as he clicked his scroll, displaying the message.

'Autumn is held hostage. My hands are tied. The danger wants to speak to you now, in the courtyard.'

Ozpin widened his eyes.

It seemed the news of Summer's death would no longer be Qrow's worst message, beginning tonight.

Ozpin quickly turned on the video feeds on his table. As it displayed Beacon's main avenue from a surveillance camera, the headmaster could see Qrow, facing off against a black-hooded girl, who was holding a black katana on a comatose woman lying on the ground.

 _Wait... is that...?_

The situation was clear. The girl in black hood was the one who wanted to talk to him, and she held the Fall Maiden hostage to prevent Qrow from doing anything about it.

The problem was- the girl wasn't a stranger to him.

 _Leliel?!_

Ozpin emptied his mug in one gulp, grabbed his cane, and descended down the elevator.

* * *

 _How could this be?_

Throughout his years -and he had been through a lot more than any other men- Ozpin was sure this was one of the few times when he was genuinely shocked.

 _She is dead._ Ozpin was sure she was. She and her sister both had perished nearly seventy years ago- another of his responsibility.

But the similarities between the girl he saw just now and Leliel Blith was too much to be a coincidence.

The same clothes, the same stance, the same katana design, and if his observations were correct, the katana was made of Dust residue -her specialty- and most of all, the Wings of Thorns.

 _...Salem must be behind this._ Yes, she was the only one who could replicate her weapons, formed a copy, and essentially created a perfect fake.

Or, that was his hope at least. Honestly, if it was a copy it would make things easier for him. If it was actually Leliel- then this was going to be a long night.

 _I..._

Arriving in the courtyard, Ozpin watched as the two hunters waiting there immediately took notice of his presence.

"Oz!" Qrow glanced at him, without diverting his attention from the Leliel lookalike.

"Stand back, Qrow." Ozpin said with an authoritative tone.

The scarecrow nodded and took a few steps back, while the headmaster stepped ahead. As they passed by each other, the scythe-wielder mouthed a few words- one that Ozpin picked quickly.

" _She is blind, but she has ears. Be careful, Oz."_

 _Blind?_ Ozpin frowned. Another indication that the girl was real. The Leliel he knew wasn't blind, but it was possible for her to lose her sight throughout the years. But Salem wouldn't make a defective copy.

As he walked toward her, Ozpin kept a good distance apart between them, and readied his cane- she was holding Amber hostage, after all. Too close, and she would take it as a threat.

Finally getting a good look on the girl in black hood, Ozpin inhaled deeply. He could practically _feel_ her presence- the girl reminded him too much of Leliel.

 _...It's not confirmed yet._ He had to be careful. Fake or not, she seemed to be Salem's servant. And he couldn't allow her to do as she pleased if that was the case.

"Who are you?" Ozpin asked.

Much to his surprise, the girl's body shook violently.

"...?" Ozpin raised a brow.

 _Is she... trembling?_

That moment.

He heard a blade was dropped to the ground. The next instant, a black blur approached him.

Logic dictated him to react. He was supposed to attack her with his cane.

But he didn't. She dropped her sword, and didn't hold her cloak's handle- indicating her lack of aggressive intent. She simply ran toward him.

 _What is she planning to-_

His thoughts were interrupted as he felt something small pressed against his chest.

As the girl quickly wrapped her arms around his midsection, and leaned her head against his chest, Ozpin only managed to widen his eyes in surprise.

"Ozpin!" She said affectionately. "Oh how long has it been- I missed you!"

The headmaster didn't acknowledge Qrow's gasp of surprise behind him. In fact, by the time he recovered from the sudden embrace, he just noticed that the girl was already looking up to him- with radiating, purple eyes.

Ozpin was quite thankful that she did that. She would be too similar with Summer, otherwise.

"You... what are you doing?" Ozpin asked in a low voice.

She smiled warmly at him.

"Erasing any doubt in your heart about who am I."

 _By embracing me?_ The headmaster thought in confusion.

Ozpin was torn. His rational thought couldn't help but think that this was some form of trap. His right hand, the one holding his weapon, was itching to move to strike the now vulnerable girl. Lest, she would strike him first with her cloak's blade.

Yet, another side of him was at ease. As embarrassing as it was, hugging _was_ Leliel's standard form of greeting for him.

 _Real? Or fake?_ Regardless, there was enough indication for both. He needed a way to confirm.

"You... were sure that I was going to be convinced? I could have attacked you instead."

"I was sure. Even if you weren't, at worst you would only impale me with your cane. Like that's going to stop me."

Ozpin was alarmed. Indeed, if it was Leliel's kind- a simple impalement wouldn't work.

 _Okay. A fake couldn't possibly be this bold._

For now at least, Ozpin was almost sure that this girl was Leliel Blith. But that only brought forth more questions.

How did she survive that suicidal mission? Did her sister survive as well? The most important of all, was she still loyal to him? Or, had Salem swayed her loyalty?

Ozpin was anxious, he had to admit. So he decided to be blunt.

"Leliel."

"Yes, Ozpin?"

"Have you betrayed us?" Ozpin asked stoically.

"Not yet." Leliel replied cheekily.

Noticing the 'yet', he narrowed his eyes at her.

"So you are planning to."

"Not quite. She spared me... and she gave me a choice."

Ozpin raised a brow.

"A choice?"

"She gave me a chance to prove my loyalty to _one of you_."

 _What?_ Ozpin was surprised. _How? Then that meant..._

He gazed intently at the girl's eyes.

Even from sight alone, Ozpin knew that the eyes themselves were fake. But the light -the determination- on it was real.

 _She is not lying..._

"She... actually gave you that freedom?"

"She did. Surprising, right? You taught me that she was not to be trusted."

Ozpin tensed.

 _Salem... actually gave a chance for betrayal?_

That was not like her. She was the type to achieve a total, absolute victory. Despite her overwhelming power, she was not arrogant. Her moves were planned cautiously, and any threats were to be neutralized. Lethally or otherwise.

 _How could she..._

He decided to brush the question aside for now. His conversation was not yet finished.

"...Then, what are you planning to do?"

Leliel closed her eyes and rested her head against his chest again.

"I want to see whether humanity deserved their continued existence."

"What?"

"Both of you possess the same knowledge. You two understood humanity, all their flaws, all their strengths. Yet, the conclusion each of you came to were the complete opposite. Have you ever wondered why?"

Ozpin was sure his heart skipped a beat at the question. That... he knew the answer. But Leliel wouldn't understand.

No one would.

She continued. "You taught me everything to love about mankind. She taught me everything to hate about mankind. For a while I wondered... which one of you to follow? Which one of you should I devote my endless life to?"

"..."

"Then I decided. I want to learn about mankind, one last time... and I will choose my path then."

She held him tighter. "The question, is... would you give me the chance to?"

"...You want to return to Beacon." Ozpin immediately understood what she meant.

"Indeed."

Leliel lifted her head off of him, and returned his gaze.

"Your academy will become the battlefield between you and her. What better place than it to learn about humanity?"

"...If I grant you permission, would you betray us, even then?"

"Probably. If she turns out to be right in the end."

The little girl frowned. That made him relax a little.

 _This is Leliel, all right._

Ozpin knew she didn't like the idea of betraying him. Yet, she would do it regardless, if she had to.

It was that contradictory nature of hers that sometimes set people off. Ozpin knew that very well.

Qrow, who had been listening the entire time, decided to jump in at that.

"You want Oz to accept you, but you want us to pardon you if you decided to betray us. That's asking too much." He spat.

"Hmm..." She smiled in response.

Leliel let go of Ozpin, and took a few steps away from the headmaster.

"I never asked you to pardon me. If I became your enemy, do not hesitate to destroy me." Leliel smirked at Qrow.

"I don't know whether you are wise," Qrow sighed, "or crazy. Just how your brain works? Honestly, you are creeping me out."

"Hihihi..." She giggled.

"I wonder which? That isn't important, now. By the way, how is it, Ozpin? In the end, you'll decide my enrollment here."

Ozpin was deep in thought. This was quite the situation he was in.

Leliel had always been an anomaly. Since Ozpin met her, something about her had always been different from others. She was not human, that's for sure, but even compared to others of her kind, like her sister for example, she was just abnormal.

It was only after he had personally recruited her into his inner circle 75 years ago, that he understood why.

Now... he felt like that was repeated.

"Now... what will it be, Ozpin?"

* * *

Tonight was one of the best moments in her life.

As Leliel sat happily on the edge of Beacon Academy's rooftop, the girl was unable to contain her excitement as she sung and played her Nocturne at the same time.

Despite being just a string-type musical instrument, Nocturne was designed to be a weapon. It was made by the same custom-made metal as her cloak, allowing it to be extremely durable and very flexible at the same time.

More than that, Nocturne could be used to channel Dust, which could help her when she was singing.

By using Wind Dust, Nocturne would be able to control the air pressure and vibration around it- meaning, with enough skill, Leliel could produce whatever sound she wanted, ranging from people's voices, to the sounds of other musical instruments.

In short, Leliel was literally capable of becoming a one-man band.

As I take your hand,  
I'm escaping it all; the memories lying within my heart are fading  
I know that this is what I want, this is what I need  
Tomorrow as well, your afterimage will come to mind, like an infinite loop.

With this twisted world I jumped into, still on-going,  
Such barren, never-changing days,  
Are coming to an end.  
So now, this is my Nevereverland I've longed for.

 _Yes!_ Leliel cheered as she reached the end of the song.

Indeed, her frozen days had come to an end. Her time was beginning to move.

The reunion with her teacher had been thoroughly enjoyable- she even got to embrace Ozpin, like she used to. Not only that, but her plan was moving smoothly- she managed to earn a place in Beacon.

That part of the plan didn't work quite well, though. Leliel would enroll in Beacon as a student, in a few weeks. It was not annoying, but she would have preferred to be one of the more important positions, befitting her capacity- like professors or something.

Perhaps she should blame her body for that. Why must her aging stop when she was 14?

 _Oh well. This is the best development possible._ She shouldn't complain.

Leliel hoped her presence wouldn't cause too much problem for Ozpin's inner circle later, though. She wouldn't be able to learn about mankind from the conflict if one side was losing to infighting because of her.

 _Surely, people Ozpin recruited couldn't be that stupid, right?_ They could learn to at least trust the fact that she was not going to betray them any time soon.

If they couldn't, well... then she probably had to whack their heads herself.

"...Hmm?"

She noticed that her scroll was beeping, in her hip-pocket.

Not knowing whether it was a call or a message, Leliel just clicked the screen.

"Hello?" A feminine voice called.

And there went her good mood. Leliel knew this voice.

 _Cinder._

"Yeah?" Leliel replied with a neutral tone.

"It's been a while, Angel." Cinder greeted.

"Hmm... half a year, was it?" Leliel replied politely.

 _Although I'd rather not talk to you forever._

As if she sensed her annoyance, Cinder replied quickly.

"I suppose I'll skip to my point. Do you happen to know any source of army I can secure in Vale?"

 _Eh?_ That got her attention.

"What? Army? Didn't you say the White Fang will suffice for your plan?"

"Unfortunately," She clicked her tongue, "I lost them. And I do not have the means to search for them."

Leliel brightened.

Cinder failed to secure the White Fang. That meant Adam had taken her warning seriously and mobilized his forces in Vale away from her.

Leliel laughed internally. Her plan was saved! Now all she had to do were to find the White Fang, and establish relations.

Not wanting to share her joy with Cinder, Leliel replied with an emotionless tone.

"Understood. I will look it up for you. I'll make sure you'll have an army before Beacon began their academic year."

"Good. Now if you'll excuse me..."

Leliel immediately hanged up the call before Cinder could finish.

 _Ha! Take that, pyromaniac!_

Now she was even happier than before. Her plan was not just moving smoothly- it managed to went even better than expected!

 _I suppose I didn't need to be so angry, this morning._ She recalled her rage when she was about to face Qrow. It was unnecessary, as all turned out well in the end.

"Ugh..." She couldn't resist the urge to continue her celebration.

The first step of her plan was more than done, and she was all ready for the next step.

 _Finally... I'll be able to find my answer..._

As she gazed up to the broken moon, she closed her eyes.

"Next year... what kind of me will be here?"

* * *

 **And there you go! The first Night chapter! Whaddya think, huh? Put it in the reviews!**

 **Sorry if the chapter quality seemed mediocre (I felt it, at least) and a bit childish. Seriously, I'll edit it if anyone complained.**

 **Do not worry about those who are interested in Liel's character, if you think that you have learned everything about her motives in this chapter then you are wrong. At this point, I've only displayed 30% of her character. Yes, just one-third.**

 **Btw, I'll remind you once more: This will probably be the last time in a while for me to update this quickly. I hope no one minded it... and the next story I will probably update next time is gonna be "Bring it on, our Destiny" my Frostbite (Adam x Weiss) story.**

 **Btw, this is the result of the poll for Leliel's love interest now. From now on, I'm** _ **encouraging**_ **you to vote for the poll. I'm gonna be away for weeks, after all.**

 **Adam (?): 2**

 **Mercury: 2**

 **Neptune: 1**

 **Blake (?): 1**

 **OC (?): 1**

 **The question mark represented pairings I do not exactly want to happen, but a poll is a poll.**

 **Thank you for following the development of Nightmare Angel so far!**

 **Note: The song used for this chapter is 'Nevereverland' by Nano; and 'When the First Love Ends' by Hatsune Miku.**


	4. Hunting Shadows

**A/N: Hello again! It's been around three weeks since the first Night chapter and now I'm back!**

 **...I'm honestly flattered by the number of positive reviews this fic gets. Seriously, at this rate I'm going to be overwhelmed, I can't respond to each and every review or else the A/N will be too long. But I'll try my best to summarize my response.**

 **I can't answer most of your questions yet. Your questions are gonna be answered in the plot itself.**

 **The ones I CAN answer are: Sharina, that's exactly how I planned Blake's outfits to be... nice guess. Also, about Leliel's past, no, it won't be explained soon. If I stick to my plan, there would be four to five more Night chapters before her past is fully revealed.**

 **Important note: if you vote for a character (or characters) but then you say something along the lines of 'until Leliel gets a love interest of her own' or 'eventual love interest', try to avoid doing that. It is quite confusing.**

 **So, for those kinds of votes, I will just take the 'eventual' love interest and ignore whoever else you mentioned. Sorry, but I don't really have a choice when you are not being clear on which one you support more.**

 **If you support all characters you mention equally, state it loud and clear. I'll add +1 for every character you mention, then. And if you're unsure, state clearly as well- so that I won't add it as a vote.**

 **Also, I want to apologize- I didn't quite explain the requirements for multiple pairings. If you want Leliel to have a three-way relationship or more, then there would have to be multiple characters winning the poll- all with equal amount of votes.**

 **I know it sounds nigh-impossible to achieve, but hey, three-way relationships are also nigh-impossible in real life. While a realistic three-way dating is a great challenge to overcome, if I can't handle it well, it would limit the scope of the romance and character developments.**

 **So I'm trying to reduce the possibility of three-some happening... without actually making it impossible, since I want it to be a fair game.**

 **With that said, here's the current result:**

 **Adam (?): 4**

 **Mercury: 2**

 **Neptune: 1**

 **Ozpin: 1**

 **Ren: 1**

 **Blake (?): 5**

 **Pyrrha: 1**

 **OC (?): 3**

 **Again, the question marks represent the pairings I do not exactly want to happen, but it's a poll, so I won't complain. (Ironically, the ones with question marks are the highest... lol). Btw, do not hesitate to mention anyone! And I mean _anyone_.**

 **Even more important note: there are so many optimistic reviews... ugh, they kinda make me feel bad.**

 **If you pay attention to my writing style, you'll know that I'm a jaded and realistic person, and you need to know that** _ **I do not believe in a world of happy endings**_ **. Much like real life, characters can -and will-** _ **suffer**_ **in this fic.**

 **That being said, it doesn't mean I'll add needless angst, and it also doesn't mean that this story will necessarily have a downer, tragic ending. I'm not cynical enough to reject happy endings when it realistically should happen.**

 **The thing I want to convey is, in my fics, when characters should realistically cause or suffer angst, misery, and pain, they** _ **will**_ **. And when they realistically must kill other people or die themselves, then they WILL.**

 **So, take this is as a warning. This fic** _ **earned**_ **that 'T' rating, and it's not for nothing that this fic is titled 'Nightmare Angel'. Leliel will remind you time and time again of that fact.**

 **Btw, one of you referred to me as an angel. Thank you! I wish I was one, but I'm human~**

 **Sorry for the long notes, and I also apologize if this note make it sound like I'm being negative. On the contrary, I'm really happy for the amount of positive response this fic managed to get! I'm grateful I have readers like you! I just don't want any misunderstandings among us!**

 **With that done, we can finally go for chapter 4, "Hunting Shadows"**

* * *

"Enjoying the night?"

Leliel was about to sing another song in her private concert on Beacon's rooftop when a familiar voice stopped her cold.

"Ozpin?" Leliel immediately activated her Semblance, not turning from her position near the rooftop's edge.

And there he was. Ozpin walked into the rooftop calmly, with a mug of coffee in his left hand, and his walking cane on his right hand.

The Angel smiled at that. Although he still brought his weapon with him, now he was relaxed enough to bring along his mug. Meaning, he did not consider her an immediate threat anymore.

"I am enjoying myself. But what about you? Have you convinced Qrow Branwen and Glynda Goodwitch to let me here?"

Ozpin frowned, ever so slightly. "I have... but don't think that they have trusted you."

"You know I don't care about that." Leliel shrugged. "How much about me have you told them? Everything?"

"Everything that I know of." Ozpin confirmed.

"It's entirely up to them whether to trust me or not, then." She stood back up, and turned to him.

"By the way, have you decided which room I will occupy for the moment? I'm going to be a student, after all."

"Actually, that's why I'm here."

"Hmm?" The girl hummed questioningly. "You will take me to my room? Don't you have a teacher in charge for the dormitories?"

"You will not get any room there." The headmaster paused for a sip of his coffee.

"Because before the curriculum begins, you will live in _my_ room."

There was silence for a moment.

"What?" Leliel uttered, taken aback. "I thought you said you don't want to sleep with-"

"I can't exactly let someone as dangerous as you around my students and teachers," Ozpin interjected calmly, "so you'll have to get used to my office, so I can watch you at all times."

 _Oh._ Leliel deflated.

Regardless, the Angel was satisfied. This pretty much secured her position. "I'm fine with that, but isn't it suspicious for a student to live anywhere but in the dorms here?"

"The curriculum hasn't started yet, so no one shall notice if we are careful."

Leliel giggled. She knew what he actually meant. _No soul shall know that I'm living in your office, right?_ Neither of them wanted needless attention from the students and teachers.

Although she knew Ozpin wasn't 'that' kind of person, it still sounded so wrong, though.

"Understood, Ozpin. Then I suppose I have to ask for your permission whenever I want to leave?"

"Yes. I believe you won't mind?"

"Not in the slightest." Leliel smiled. "It's just like the old days."

"Speaking of the old days," Ozpin's tone became serious, "we have a lot to talk about it."

"Hee hee, I know."

The Angel turned around once more, and gazed up to the broken Moon.

"Salem also wished for me to tell you about my life with her."

* * *

The city of Vale wasn't particularly known to be safe during the dark. Criminals lurking in the shadows left their comforting darkness and head out for various reasons.

Vale police department was also known to be incompetent. Large, underground criminal groups- such as those led by Roman Torchwick, established their base in the city, without much hardships. Thus, areas people would call 'the dark side' were not uncommon.

Therefore, it was correct to say that Vale was at its most dangerous during the night.

Thus, Blake and Adam decided to begin their search during the moon hours.

The two faunus had arrived in Vale almost an hour ago to their temporary safehouse in the Vale's slums. After finishing their preparations there, the two of them were ready to head out.

Blake was waiting outside the small house, reading a book and sitting on the sidecar of _Blood Rush_ , Adam's personal motorbike with a black-and-red color scheme.

She had no idea that he owned a motorbike before- they had always traveled by foot on land, and with Bullhead through the air. In the few occasions they had to use a vehicle, it was usually stolen cars or Bullheads- she never saw Adam riding a motorcycle before.

"Are you done yet, Adam?" Blake shouted to her mentor, who was inside the house.

"Almost." Adam deadpanned.

The cat faunus rolled her eyes at that. It was quite unusual. Adam was quick in taking care of all things, be it cleaning himself or his tools, swapping clothes, and even fighting opponents. So for him to actually take a while was a bit annoying for Blake.

After a few moments, he spoke again.

"Done."

His voice was much closer now. _He must have exited the house._

Turning around, Blake found herself surprised at her partner's appearance.

He was clad in a black, short-sleeved top with a combat vest, cargo pants, and a pair of combat boots. His mask was gone, replaced by a red-tinted sunglasses. His horns were also painted red.

In other words, he was wearing his old clothes, plus disguise- that explained him taking longer than usual.

"Haven't seen that in a while." Blake paused as she could feel heat on her cheeks. "...You are looking good, Adam."

She was not being sarcastic. Blake had never seen that appearance since he went to meet the new White Fang leader, and honestly, she liked him better with those clothes.

"I don't exactly like these, but if you say so, my love." He said softly.

Smiling, the cat girl gestured to the seat next to her. "Let's go."

"Before we do that," the bull crossed his arms. "I believe we have things to talk about."

Blake sighed. _Here we go again..._

"Adam, we do not have time for this." Blake closed her book.

"Stop trying to avoid the subject, Blake." Adam said sharply, "you wanted to talk about something and clearly, it's troubling you."

She glared at her mentor. "It _is_ troubling, which is why I want to complete this mission first."

"Well, what stops you from doing it _now_?" He countered.

Blake rolled her eyes. _Seriously..._

She was honestly tired of holding herself back. There was so much to tell him, she wanted to tell him everything- but she couldn't do it now.

 _Calm down, Blake... you can do this._

"Adam..." Blake said pleadingly, "I need _time_. I'm not even sure about what is troubling me, and I _don't_ want to compromise us in the middle of an important mission."

Frowning, Adam gazed intently into her eyes. It sent chills down Blake's spine- even with the sunglasses, his gaze was still felt.

However, she had seen enough of that to be immune to it. After a moment of ineffectual glare, he finally gave in and sighed.

"Just what is wrong, Blake? You know you can tell me anything. There's no need to hide anything between us." Adam said reassuringly.

"I'll tell you once I'm sure, Adam." Blake said quickly. "Now please, let's go."

The bull let out another long, defeated sigh.

"Make sure of that, my love."

* * *

Blake let out a soft purr as the wind breezed her cheek and hair comfortably.

Sitting comfortably the sidecar of Adam's bike, the two of them remained silent during their journey out of Vale's slums and into the main city.

Considering their last conversation, she had to say she was lucky that Adam didn't press further. Honestly, Blake was anxious- she dodged the bullet this time, but there's no telling when he would pursue the matter again.

The cat faunus was being truthful when she said she needed time. As much as Blake wanted it, she couldn't express her feelings now- Adam wouldn't understand anything. Worse, he might actually treat her as a traitor, and kill her right then and there.

The way the current Adam was, Blake couldn't tell what he would do. It was too risky to bet on it.

What Blake needed now was a force- something that would leave Adam with no choice but to listen to her. She felt really bad for thinking this, but the girl on the train was her best shot.

She was the only one who managed to push them into a corner in her recent memory. If Blake could recreate the same situation in her favor, Adam would be forced to listen to her. And their burdens would be finally released then.

Blake knew the plans had so many flaws- so many things could go wrong. But really, it was her last hope. And she would not give up until the very end.

Deciding to break the silence between them, Blake decided to ask more about their destination.

"I don't doubt your intelligence gathering skill, Adam." She said, twiddling her hair. "But are you sure this guy could help us?"

"Of course." Adam answered. "For a human, you could say he is quite useful, both as an information dealer, and as a means to help us search for her."

Blake was honestly skeptical. "Will he even help us?"

"Humans are greedy, Blake. They will do anything for money." He said nonchalantly.

The cat girl frowned a bit at that. _Yet another human comment..._ although she supposed he was right in this case. Blake had dealt with information dealers in the past, and they were not exactly generous.

"There it is." Adam noted.

 _Phew._ Blake stretched her body as the ride finally came to a stop.

Turning her attention toward the building in front of them, it took Blake a few glances to actually identify what it was.

"...A club?"

"Indeed it is. The club owned by Hei Xiong, better known as Junior."

* * *

As the two of them entered the club, Blake found that the area was much more crowded than it looked like from the outside. There were at least fifty people dancing to the tune of a music Blake recognized as 'Red Like Roses' sung by an anonymous singer.

The people there were mostly civilians, but there were a few dozen people clad in black -she assumed them to be Junior's henchmen- who were armed. Mostly with guns and swords, that she noticed.

Scanning over the club, Blake found that three people stood out from the rest of the crowd- a huge man clad in black suit, and a pair of twins clad in white and red respectively, sitting on the bar's chairs.

Guessing the man was Junior, Blake spoke. "Is that Junior, Adam?"

"That is him. Let's go." Adam stepped forward.

As the two of them approached the bar owner, the man gestured for the twins to leave, as he himself approached Adam and Blake.

"What do you want, punks?" He scoffed.

Blake rolled her eyes at that. _Is this one of those typical rude criminal guys?_

Although, considering their weapons were very clearly displayed in the open, she supposed he had no reason to be polite.

Her mentor spoke. "We want to ask you a few things, Junior."

"So you do know who I am." He sighed. "Well then, I suppose this doesn't need to end the hard way. Do you have a name, redhead?"

Blake noticed that Adam's lips turned to form a smirk- he seemed to be waiting for the question.

"Ever heard the name 'Adam Taurus'?" He said in a low voice.

Alarmed, Junior immediately took a few steps away from them. After a few moments, he seemed to recognize her partner.

"What the hell!?" He said in disbelief. "You are-"

"You and I know better than to alert those humans, right?" Adam cut him off and pointed a thumb to the crowds of people behind him. "Like yourself, I do not want to cause a scene in your bar."

It didn't take a genius to figure out that Adam's words were meant to be a threat. Junior too realized this and threw a glare.

Blake sighed. _Hopefully this guy would comply_. She didn't exactly want to fight, not here, not now.

Thankfully, he seemed to be wise enough to listen. "...Huh. Even I would not even dream to mess with you."

"Preferably, neither would I." Adam smirked. "Now can we proceed to our questions?"

Junior raised a brow questioningly. "You only wanted information from me?"

"I am well-known for many things, Junior. Wasting my time is not included among them." Her mentor said monotonously.

The bar owner frowned. "...Go on, then."

"I'll skip to my point. Do you know about any black haired girl, roughly fourteen to fifteen years old, dresses in all black, wears a cape, and carries a lyre?" Blake asked.

Junior widened his eyes. "Huh? You are looking for her, too?"

That immediately received the attention of the two faunus. _Too?_

"Too?" Blake repeated. "What do you mean?"

Junior frowned hard, and glared daggers at both of them. Blake took notice of that- _he seemed to know something about her_. Then Adam was right, he could lead them.

"Well, some lovely lady has been asking me about the whereabouts of a girl whose exact description matched yours." He said, anger underlying.

Again, Blake wasn't expecting that. "What?"

"Someone other than us?" Adam uttered.

The teacher and student glanced at each other for a moment, mentally and mutually agreeing to investigate more.

"Describe them." Adam ordered.

Junior scoffed, probably annoyed being ordered around. "Well, she is a young huntress. Probably still in her twenties if you ask me, dresses in all white and seems to suffer albinism."

"Hmm?" Blake raised a brow.

"That sounds like Winter Schnee." Adam noted. "You are not making this up, aren't you?"

"Hell no." Junior denied. "Why would a specialist of Atlas even come here?"

Blake decided to cut in before the conversation could escalate. "Where can we find this woman?"

Junior scowled. "I'm not telling you."

"What?" Blake narrowed her eyes.

"You realize the consequences of not answering us." Adam said venomously, tightening his grip on Wilt and Blush. "Am I wrong to assume this?"

"Listen bullhead," Junior countered, "I haven't stooped low enough to betray her because of your petty threats. Also, I am not that much of an idiot to get to her bad side."

Blake's instincts were alarmed at the way he worded it. "Excuse me?"

"This woman is also a powerful figure in the underground, mind you," Junior spat, "and I honestly fear her more than you."

"Well," Adam gripped his Wilt's hilt, "you've made a serious mistake in your calculation, Junior."

"We'll see about that. Come on, what are you waiting for?" Junior widened his arms, daring them. "Do what you want. Let me warn you, if she knows that you are responsible for whatever you did to me, you'll wish you have listened to me."

Blake was surprised. She had never met an information dealer with that much stubbornness. When Adam threatened them, usually they would give in to their requests in an instant. They were usually pathetic cowards, treasuring their luxury to the very end.

She wasn't sure whether this Junior guy was loyal to this woman, or was afraid of her.

This woman in white had been looking for the same girl as Adam and Blake themselves had. That could only mean three things.

Someone who had been threatened by the little demon before, just like themselves;

Less likely, the little demon's ally who had lost track of her;

And, least likely, an unrelated party who was seeking the demon for her own reason.

 _The first reason seem more likely..._ Blake noted. But they _really_ had to be careful, if the second possibility was true... then the woman in white likely had similar powers as their target. If that's the case, they were more or less screwed the moment they decided to mess with her.

Glancing at each other once more, Blake was sure that her mentor was thinking the exact same thing as she was.

She was right. Adam returned to his normal stance. "You are lucky that we are keeping a low profile now, Junior."

"That's my line, bullhead." He replied. "Now if your business is done, get out of my bar."

Feeling that he wouldn't continue, Blake decided to give it a rest. "Come on, Adam. Let's go."

"Tch," Adam scoffed. "Okay."

Turning to the entrance, the two partners whispered to each other as they walked, discussing their interrogation.

"What do you think, Adam?"

"Someone other than us is looking for that girl... I'm not sure whether that is a good or bad news."

"What should we do then?" Blake glanced at the bar behind them.

"Whoever this woman is, it's a good idea to find her first." Adam concluded. "Regardless of her allegiance, we have a better chance in finding our target if we have more clues."

"Then, I suppose we'll watch this club for a while?" Blake asked. "That guy said this woman in white has been asking him. There is some possibility of her visiting this club."

"Indeed." Adam nodded. "Let's wait outside. We are not welcome here, anyway."

As the automatic door opened for them to leave, however, what awaited beyond the door was someone they didn't expect.

It was a tall man clad in white suit and black trousers. He wore various accessories that would give the impression of a gentleman, most noticeably his bowler hat and a lit cigar in his mouth. Compounding that, he was also carrying a fancy-looking walking cane.

Blake's eyes widened as she recognized the man. It was the infamous thief who were all over Vale news- Roman Torchwick.

"Hello there. Leaving the night this early?" The thief asked cheekily.

"You... Roman Torchwick?" Blake uttered, unable to contain her surprise.

"One and only." He said sarcastically, as he put a hand on his chest and bowed mockingly.

While they were recovering from the unexpected encounter, the faux gentleman took his time to evaluate the two people in front of them.

Recognizing something, he narrowed his visible eye. "Hmm... I've never seen you before. Care to introduce yourselves?"

"Sorry," Adam replied tersely, "we are in a hurry. Please excuse us."

Blake could tell her mentor was in panic. That was the appropriate response, though- being recognized by a major crimelord like him was not keeping a low profile, at all.

 _We have to get out of here..._ Blake thought frantically.

"Wait, wait... " Roman stepped to the side, blocking their way. Blake mentally cursed at that.

"I don't think we have met before. But _you_ ," he pointed his cane toward Adam, "kind of remind me of a certain animal rights activist."

Blake twitched. Not only he was suspicious of them, but he was already testing their heritage by trying to provoke them.

 _No... Adam, please don't... ignore him!_

However, it was at that moment.

The ground under them exploded.

* * *

Caught off-guard, the two faunus were thrown back into the club by the sudden explosion.

 _What the...!?_

Recovering quickly, Adam stood up back to his feet in half a second and prepared bis Wilt and Blush, glaring at the thief.

His cane was pointed to the floor they were on- its base was uncovered, revealing a muzzle.

 _Shit..._ Adam cursed. He let his guard down- again.

Glancing at Blake as she stood back up, the mentor became concerned. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She answered.

Adam smiled in relief at that, before frowning as he refocused his attention toward the enemy in front of him. "Why do you attack us?" He spat.

"Don't be so sensitive, Adam Taurus." Roman chuckled, twirling his cane. "It's nothing personal on my part."

"Someone who hired me wants to hire you- that's all."

Adam instantly connected the dots. Someone who wanted to hire him- Cinder Fall.

 _Damn! So after failing to recruit the White Fang, she turned to this guy?_

Then coming to this city was a mistake- Roman Torchwick had his nose nearly anywhere in the town, the only reason why Adam didn't come to him for information was because he was a massive racist.

"What's with all the commotion?!" Junior yelled.

At that, Junior, the twins, and all of guards there quickly gathered behind Adam and Blake, drawing their weapons.

"Whoa, whoa, Junior. I'm not at fault. They started it." Roman lied, smirking.

"Roman Torchwick?" Junior asked questioningly. "Why are you here?"

 _Bastard._ Adam scoffed. So the two knew each other- if that was the case, then Junior would most likely side with Torchwick.

"Well you see," Roman shrugged, "I came here because I want to hire some of your boys, but turns out two members of the White Fang foolishly attacked me and damaged your club like the mindless beasts that they are."

The civilians inside the bar gasped in unison. The bull gritted his teeth- so much for trying to lay low.

"Huh." Junior scowled. "I'm not surprised."

Adam didn't even bother to glance at his partner at this point- he knew what she was thinking. They had no choice.

Except to fight.

* * *

Roman was amused.

It had been a while since he had this much enjoyment since his employment under the fire bitch.

She had been fairly attractive and charming at first, so he decided to accept her offer- but that was a mistake on his part. Cinder Fall was one of the most annoying lady he had ever known.

It was clear that Roman wouldn't be able to turn his back on her, no matter what he did. Since then, Roman had to admit he became grumpier- even Neo pointed it out. And for all her psychotic urges, the girl had the patience of a saint, at least for him.

And so, here he was- obeying Cinder's orders.

Cinder had texted him just a few hours ago to hire as many goons as he could, and if possible, find the White Fang troops for that purpose. She subsequently sent him the information regarding their members, including their appearance, weapons, and other insignificant details to help him search for them.

Roman thought it was going to be difficult to find even one. As it turned out, he didn't even need to stretch his muscles- he accidentally discovered the commander himself.

He stifled his laugh. _Man, these animals sure have it rough._

Roman heard from the grumblings of Cinder's two kids about how they lost the White Fang. Meaning, they actually did try to hire them, but failed for some reason. That meant this Adam Taurus was lucky to escape her clutches.

 _But then, he was unlucky enough to run into me_. Someone who was hired in place of him. _Oh, the irony._

Roman had no personal grudges for the White Fang. Heck, even his racism tendencies were just him messing with them- their reactions were amusing. But well, orders were orders. If he missed this chance, then third-degree burns from his employers were the least of his worries.

 _No hard feelings, bullhead._

As the two animals were busy fighting Junior and his goons, Roman only supported them from afar by shooting his Melodic Cudgel repeatedly with his right hand- while drawing out his scroll with his left.

He clicked his tongue as he called his employer. After a few moments, her hologram was displayed on his scroll.

"Yes, Roman?"

"I am having an encounter with Adam Taurus." Roman chuckled as the bitch widened her eyes, before continuing. "But you know, he is an absolute monster. I don't think I can handle him for long."

"Very well. What's your position?"

"In Junior's club, northern part of Vale, near the Fallen Highway."

"I see. I'll be arriving in five minutes."

"See ya soon, Cinder."

As the call ended, Roman widened his eyes as one of Junior's goons was thrown at him, forcing him to step to the side to dodge.

Turning around, he saw the girl who seemed to be Adam's partner glaring at him, pointing her sword-gun at him.

"Bastard." She cursed.

"Well," Roman prepared his Melodic Cudgel, "thanks for telling me that these guys aren't worth my cents."

* * *

 **And there you go! I'm sorry for the three weeks delay, but chapter 4 is finally here! What do you think?**

 **Sorry about the almost complete lack of Leliel scene in this chapter- but that was intentional. Her backstory is a long, massive, thorny journey, it can even become a story of its own, hence I'm dropping as many hints as I can with the Night chapters.**

 **I might be able to upload the next chapter sooner, but I'm not promising anything- since my non-RWBY fic also needs love. Sorry for the inconvenience.**

 **Thank you for following the developments of 'Nightmare Angel' so far!**

 **P.S.: Songs used, 'Red Like Roses' by Jeff Williams.**


	5. Wild Flames

**A/N: It's been a month, my readers! Time for another update! But first, let me respond to the reviewers!**

 **Wow. I can't say much. I don't expect to have this much positive response for my fic. And I'll say this: Thank you for constantly reading, reviewing, and waiting for this story. I'm grateful!**

 **I have to say sorry for the one month delay. I need to say that, after seeing all of the responses. Next time, if I don't update in three weeks, please- chew me out or something. I might be busy, but that's not an excuse.**

 **Now to sum up my respond to the reviewers: To those who think Blake will kick Roman's ass... uh, guys? Do you remember that Roman not only managed to overpower Blake, but also fend off both her and Sun at the same time during Volume 1 Finale?**

 **I think I don't need to explain why Roman would defeat Blake in an one-on-one duel. Even though she defeated him easily at Volume 2 Episode 11, it was because Blake utilized Dust- a new tactic she had never shown before, plus Roman was being overconfident since he had handed Blake her ass in their previous encounter.**

 **This time however, Roman faced Blake knowing that she is Adam Taurus' partner. He knew how dangerous Adam is thanks to Cinder and will fight assuming Blake is just as good as him. Meaning? Roman will not be careless in this fight.**

 **So? Does that mean Adam and Blake will be caught by Cinder? That will be answered by the next chapter, of course.**

 **About how Adam will respond to Blake's feelings... I'm not quite sure yet. There are so much potential, so many 'story routes' that could happen. You can say that point is the 'branching point' of the story for the Adam and Blake, and the whole White Fang.**

 **...In one hand, my sadistic side wishes for Adam to reject it. On the other hand, my conscience tells me to make him accept. And due to the context of the story, it is perfectly possible for both. So overall, I'm just like you: I'm not sure yet! And I don't want to burden you guys with YET ANOTHER poll just for that.**

 **Speaking of which, the votes for Leliel's love interest surprises me- I thought Adam and Blake will win, but suddenly a great number of Ozpin supporters appear! Oh my goodness!**

 **Adam (?): 6**

 **Mercury: 2**

 **Neptune 1**

 **Ozpin: 10**

 **Ren: 1**

 **Blake (?): 5**

 **Pyrrha: 1**

 **OC (?): 6**

 **Suddenly Ozpin reaches a double digit. Wow. I wonder, will you ship Leliel with more unexpected characters? Remember that Leliel will become a student~ there are so many possibilities.**

 **Now that's done, let's do this! I present you chapter 5, "Wild Flames"**

* * *

Blake was pissed.

As she prepared to fight Roman Torchwick, Blake sighed in annoyance as she considered her situation.

Blake and Adam were supposed to lay low and gather information- that was why they came to Junior's bar. And, as luck would have it, they did gain an info- a mysterious woman in white was also looking for the same… _thing_ the duo were looking for.

Things were going fine… until this _prick_ managed to identify her mentor, and under the orders of Cinder Fall, no less. He had to be calling his employer, just now. That meant Cinder was coming- if they couldn't escape by then, things would take turn for the worse.

Blake had to defeat this guy. The White Fang's freedom was at stake!

With her Gambol Shroud in hand, Blake transformed her katana into its gun form and threw the gun on a ribbon at Torchwick.

The thief responded by smacking the gun away with his cane, at which point Blake fired the gun to fling it back to Torchwick's direction. However, he repelled the attack again and retaliated with an explosive shot aimed at her feet.

 _Hmm… how about melee?_

Forced to leap away from the explosion, Blake pulled her gun back and transformed it back to its sword form as she caught it in her right hand. Then, Blake created clones as she zig-zagged and closed the distance between them.

Blake noticed that Torchwick merely watched her with a smirk as she approached him. At that, the cat faunus narrowed her eyes.

Now within close quarters, Blake left a clone in front of Torchwick and propelled herself past him, swinging her katana at him from behind. However, the thief reacted faster than she had thought, turning and parrying her sword to the side.

The faunus continued her assault by swinging her sheath-cleaver at the thief from the other side, but he ducked to avoid her attack, before suddenly moved toward her and threw a punch to her face.

 _This guy is faster than I thought…_ Blake produced a clone to take the hit, as she herself performed a hand-backspring to prepare herself for another exchange of blows.

As soon as she was back to her feet, Blake leaped at Torchwick and attacked with a downward slash, which he blocked. Landing in front of him, she thrusted her katana at the thief, but again he managed to parry the sword to his right.

Frowning as none of her attacks connected, Blake backflipped away from Torchwick. As the fight was paused, the faunus threw him a glare when she was back to her feet.

"You are certainly stronger than your looks suggest." Blake commented.

"And you are certainly weaker than your partner suggests." He replied cheekily.

Offended, Blake narrowed her eyes and attacked him once again. As she swung her katana at his face, Torchwick ducked while raising his cane upward, catching the blade with the handle, before pulling her weapon down.

Blake only had a second to gasp as Torchwick proceeded to land a solid uppercut on her chin. Her Aura protected her jaw, but the force was enough to daze her for a few moments.

The faunus cursed internally, but the thief didn't miss a beat and slammed his cane to the side of her face, causing her to be knocked away.

"Ugh!"

Hitting the ground a few feet away from him, Blake recovered just in time to see the thief firing another explosive projectile at her.

Without thinking, Blake quickly produced another clone to take the shot and propel herself to the side, narrowly avoiding the explosion that destroyed the clone and the floor it was on.

"Well, well, aren't you persistent." Torchwick said, twirling his cane.

Blake gritted her teeth in frustration. She didn't expect the thief to be a difficult opponent… she had miscalculated.

Blake wasn't sure whether she could take on the entire Junior Club at once by herself, so she wordlessly told her mentor to handle them while she would fight Roman Torchwick. While Blake was sure that the thief could fight, it shouldn't be on a level she couldn't outmatch.

 _Seems that criminals know how to survive._

Blake gripped her weapons harder. Meanwhile, Torchwick chuckled.

"Is it fine if you just stand there like an idiot? I just called my employer, you know."

The faunus twitched. He was right, she had no time to waste. If she couldn't beat him quickly, then they would be screwed.

 _Calm down, Blake._ Blake told herself. He was trying to make her panic- the worst possible thing to do.

Blake frowned contemplatively. She had to find out a way to overcome his defenses, and remove him out of the equation.

Meanwhile, Torchwick glanced to other side of the bar brawl.

"Hmm… that bullhead certainly is no laughing stock." He commented.

Although Blake was sure that Adam was winning his fights, concern made her took a glance to his side of the fight.

Blake watched as her partner knocked several henchmen senseless with his sheath -without drawing out his sword- and jumped to the DJ's podium, kicked the bear-masked guy to the wall, grabbed his collar, slammed his face to the table, and promptly stole the DJ's machine gun.

Adam didn't stop there- holding his Wilt and Blush in his right hand and the stolen gun on his left, he promptly sent the guy flying off his booth with his sheath, and with the machine gun, he fired at the henchmen downwards.

Blake was both relieved and amused seeing that.

It seemed that Adam hadn't killed anyone, and that was good. The amusement came from the fact that, even with a blunt melee weapon and a stolen gun, Adam still used them like he wielded Wilt and Blush- something she found funny.

 _I wonder who taught him that?_

However, it was no time to be distracted- Blake refocused her attention at Torchwick.

"Not lowering your guard at all, eh? Seems that you are not pathetic as I thought." He mocked.

She narrowed her eyes. "I'll make you shut your mouth!"

Just as the cat faunus was about to continue her assault, however, the thief responded to her declaration by firing his cane at her repeatedly.

Blake avoided his first three projectiles by running to her right, but she noticed his next shots were not aimed at her.

The faunus watched as the floor around her were systematically destroyed by his explosive projectiles. The resulting explosions created smoke-screen around her, but it did nothing to harm her.

"...?"

"Ha ha ha!"

Laughing, Torchwick fired another projectile, and suddenly followed it up by firing the handle of his cane.

Blake widened her eyes. Her brain quickly processed that the cane's handle was actually a hook, tethered to the cane with a cable.

 _Wait, don't tell me…!_

The girl wasn't able to react as the handle quickly caught up to the explosive projectile he fired earlier and hooked it mid-air, causing it to detonate.

Right above her head.

As the overhead explosion practically forced her body down to the ground, Blake was only able to let out a yelp before her face was planted to the floor.

Feeling like she was just stomped by an Ursa, Blake struggled to stand back up to her feet.

 _Damn it…!_

Recovering from her daze, Blake focused her attention as she recovered. However, the first thing she was able to see was a smirk on her opponent's face.

"Bull's eye." Torchwick chuckled.

Blake didn't have enough time to respond before another beatdown was admistered to her.

* * *

"Is that your best?"

The bull faunus sighed boredly as he looked around at his frightened enemies. He had been effortlessly beating them down- without even drawing his sword.

Usually Adam would have decapitated or mutilated these guys several times over with Wilt, but killing them wasn't a good idea, now.

If Adam killed the henchmen, then it was likely that the 'woman in white' Junior was talking about would hunt him and Blake down. And that was not exactly keeping a low profile.

That meant he needed to hold back… something he really did _not_ like.

After he slammed his sheath to the head of a henchman, Adam aimed the machine gun he stole at another henchman -the last one standing- and pulled the trigger. However, the gun didn't fire anything.

Realizing the machine gun he stole had run out of ammo, Adam decided to improvise by discarding the weapon by throwing it on the henchman's face, knocking him to the floor.

 _Mooks…_

Adam turned his sights on Junior at the other side of the bar. The twins clad in red and white were on his right and left respectively, preparing themselves for combat.

"You are a beast." Junior commented, preparing something Adam could only recognize as a rocket launcher on his right shoulder.

"I don't like repeating myself, but I'll say it again. Give up already." Adam deadpanned.

"In your dreams, bullhead."

With those words, the bar owner fired a swarm of what Adam identified to be guided missiles. Knowing that avoiding all of those missiles would prove difficult, Adam decided to get serious.

 _I suppose it's time._

Finally drawing his sword, Adam pulled Wilt out of Blush and quickly swung it repeatedly to release multiple crescent-shaped Dust beams at the missiles, destroying them mid-air, before sheathing the sword again.

As the smoke of the resulting explosion obstructed his view, Adam narrowed his eyes behind the red sunglasses.

… _Two incoming._

True to his instincts, the twins emerged from the smoke and charged at him. Seeing this, Adam waited to see which one would leave an opening first.

The red one attacked first, who made a downward slash with the claws on her arms. Adam backstepped to dodge her attack, but the other twin ran past her pair and attacked him with a sweep of her bladed heels, aimed at his feet.

The faunus took an even further leap backwards to avoid the kick, taking his time to judge the skill and finesse of his opponents.

 _I see…_

Seeing as the twins then separated and tried to flank him from different directions, Adam decided to concentrate on one of them- the white one.

As the red one attacked him with another swipe, Adam stepped to the side to avoid her attack while watching as the white one jumped over them and landed behind him. Fully aware of this opening, Adam aimed his Blush over his shoulder and launched Wilt off the sheath, hitting the white twin on her forehead, causing her to wince in surprise pain.

Not missing a beat, Adam turned and closed their distance with a single step, catching his sword mid-air and landing a kick square on the white twin's torso. The white twin only managed to let out an abrupt yelp as her body was flung to a nearby glass pillar, destroying it.

Turning his sights on the other twin, he watched as the girl in red didn't immediately attack him, likely wavering after seeing her partner's defeat.

"...Hmm?"

Adam's instincts were alarmed as he sensed danger coming from his side. Turning his gaze, Adam was surprised to see Junior leaping at him with his weapon raised- it had transformed into a large batting stick.

Surprised, because he didn't think he would make such an idiotic move.

 _An opening._ That instant, Adam prepared his Semblance.

Deciding that heavily injuring Junior was just as bad an idea as killing his henchmen, Adam's hair glowed red as he prepared to release the energy that had been charged within Wilt by Blush. His signature technique-

 _Moonslice._

Drawing his sword with an extreme speed, Adam aimed his strike at Junior's weapon, hoping to shatter his confidence by displaying a massive difference in strength- that usually worked to intimidate most of his non-stupid opponents.

Unexpectedly, it was Junior's weapon -the bat- that got shattered instead.

As Junior landed in front of him, it took him a few seconds to realize that he had lost his bat. He glanced at his weapon just in time to see the bat dissolving into rose petals in his hand.

"W-what!?" He muttered in shock.

Not wanting to waste any time, Adam sheathed his sword, and with both of his hands gripping the sheath, the bull faunus swung the weapon at the man's face- knocking him away, and sending him toward the girl in red.

Adam chuckled at that.

"What the-"

The red-dressed twin was abruptly cut short as her own boss ungracefully hit her, causing the both of them to hit the floor and finally, onto the wall.

Seeing as the two of them didn't stand back up, Adam sighed in disappointment.

 _That was not hard… Blake could've taken these out by herself- Oh yeah. Blake._

Recalling her partner, Adam turned around to see Blake's condition. However, the area of the bar near the automatic door was filled with smoke- it prevented him from seeing much. It was probably caused by Torchwick's explosive shots.

 _Fuck you, Torchwick…_ He started the fight, and now he trashed the bar. At this rate, whatever crime he pulled off here would be blamed on the White Fang.

Adam had no time to think of a way to get around that now, though- for now, he and Blake had to retreat. There was no time to worry about profile.

Relying on his ears, Adam calmly walked toward the smoke-screen.

"..."

Narrowing his eyes behind the sunglasses as he walked forward, Adam noticed that it was eerily quiet, he could hear nothing but his own faint footsteps. The bull faunus frowned at that-. if Blake was fighting the thief, then it shouldn't be this quiet.

 _Could it be that they are fighting outside?_

With that in mind, Adam hastened his steps. There was no point to stay in the bar anymore.

Holding his breath as he walked past the smoke-screen as quickly as he could, Adam found himself at the other side of the door in a few moments.

However, it was at that moment.

Adam's heart skipped a beat.

"Blake!" Adam shouted in horror.

Near the entrance of the bar, the thief were holding his partner down in the most brutal way possible with a cane.

Blake was struggling on the floor as Torchwick was stepping on her back with his left foot. Meanwhile, his cane's handle was wrapped around her neck, while Blake's own weapons were dropped on the floor, just a few feet out of her reach.

It didn't take long for Adam to understand that the position was dangerous- Roman could strangle or break Blake's neck just by forcefully pulling his cane up.

At his voice, both Torchwick and Blake noticed him.

"Oh, you are here just in time, bullhead." Torchwick grinned mockingly.

Adam ignored him as he noticed that Blake only stared at him apologetically- it was if she was saying, 'I'm sorry… I screwed up.'

The bull faunus didn't even pay attention to that and quickly rushed forward. However, the thief stopped him on his tracks with a warning.

"In case you don't take the hint, Adam Taurus, don't move." The criminal said cheekily, smirking.

Adam gritted his teeth. "You bastard!"

Torchwick merely shrugged. "Jeez, you just noticed that?"

"Aaa…!"

The thief pulled his cane up, squeezing Blake's neck and causing her to suffocate. Adam almost felt physically harmed as he heard Blake's strangled cry.

"Heh." The thief chuckled as he lowered his cane. As Blake gasped for air immediately after, Torchwick spoke again.

"What's wrong? The mighty animal who fought for his race is unable to protect his single pet?" He mocked again.

The bull clenched his fists. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to move, to kill the thief, and to _save Blake_. And yet he didn't move- Torchwick was holding her partner hostage. Any perceived threat and Blake would be killed on the spot.

Adam cursed under his breath as his mind went into a race. He had to think of a way to get out of this. And fast, considering that Roman might have called Cinder to come over while holding them off here.

 _But how?!_

The thief was watching him- he couldn't make a single move. Not if he wanted Blake to survive through this.

If he wanted to escape by himself, he could. The White Fang didn't exactly need Blake. So long as the leaders were around -himself included- the Fang would continue to rise.

But what was the point of it all if Blake wasn't there?

"...Huh?"

As he gazed at his partner on the floor, Adam finally realized that Blake's eyes were onto him as he was deep in thought- trying to convey something.

Gaining his attention, Blake let out a sigh of relief. Quickly after, the girl's lips moved soundlessly, mouthing a sentence. It was a message.

One that Adam couldn't accept.

* * *

" _Leave… just leave me."_

Blake's mind was frantic. She knew this was an idiotic thing to say. If Adam left without her, she couldn't say a word to him. She would never be able to tell any of her feelings.

Nothing would change.

But, if she had to choose between her life and the freedom of her people, it was obvious.

Blake knew that Cinder Fall needed her partner to enslave the White Fang. That meant the only one who should avoid the woman was Adam. So long as she didn't get her hands on him, White Fang would be safe.

Although Blake was sure the woman would most likely do unspeakable things to get information out of her… it would be pointless once Adam had mobilized the White Fang from their current location.

It was likely she wouldn't survive after that… but that was fine.

 _My life isn't something I'm going to throw away without a good reason._ And her brothers' freedom was something worth sacrifing yourself for.

The cat faunus noticed that her partner had already looked distraught.

 _I'm sorry, Adam…_

But she had no choice. Blake knew that he too, understood this. Adam was one of the leaders of the White Fang. He had to prioritize the many over the few.

"Eh?" Blake uttered.

She swore she saw something.

Something small- and reflective. On her partner's face. It seemed to trail down.

She suddenly understood what it was.

Blake smiled painfully. She didn't need to talk in order to understand what he was thinking, and she didn't need to see through the sunglasses to understand what he was conveying.

 _Adam…_

Blake closed her eyes.

 _If only you showed it more often…_

She took a deep breath-

 _That painful heart of yours._

She screamed at the top of her lungs.

"RUN, ADAM!"

It was that moment.

She heard a shotgun fire.

"What the-"

Torchwick's voice was abruptly cut by a weird sound.

And suddenly, the weight that was on her body was gone.

"Eh?"

It took her a few moments to realize that Torchwick seemed to have removed his foot from her.

 _What the…? Why?_

Blake stared at Adam. He looked dumbfounded.

Seeing that, Blake decided that she had to see it for herself.

Blake was held down like that for roughly 3 minutes, so as soon as she bent her back, it felt a sore pain. However, she endured and stood up, turning around to see what happened to the thief.

And then, golden orbs met lilac.

It was a blonde woman.

Her golden mane was windswept, and she unloaded something out of one of her yellow gauntlets. Her stance suggested that she just punched someone.

Before Blake could say anything, she spoke.

"You okay?"

* * *

 **And… that's it! Sorry to have a short chapter after one month wait. I can continue past this, add a Leliel scene... but it will feel more like cliffhanger. And many do not like that, right?.**

 **But I'll make up for this- I can promise you that much, since the next chapter is another Night chapter. Leave your thoughs in the reviews or PMs, if this chapter is somehow lacking in quality, I'll fix it.**

 **I'll probably update my 'Something about a Rose' or 'Alternate Reincarnation' next week, so the next chapter will probably be done in two or three weeks- sorry about that. If I can manage it earlier, I'll post it.**

 **By the way, keep voting- don't stop just on characters that has already appeared. Remember Leliel will enter Beacon- she can be shipped with everyone and everything! (Although I prefer not team RWBY, Adam, and OCs…)**

 **Thank you for following the developments of Nightmare Angel so far!**


	6. Teaser

**A/N: Salutations! It's been a while since I last updated this. It's about time!**

… **But I have to disappoint you since this is not the next chapter. I'll be honest, despite the overwhelming excitement I have (and the support you gave), I have to make use of my time.**

 **In three weeks, I'll have to go through something really important. And I will probably be unable to update a thing until that week passes, so even now, I'm busy preparing for the trial.**

 **But that doesn't mean I'll leave this fic. On the contrary, I will leave you a teaser, just to show you that I'm still doing this.**

 **Well, let's not waste time. Here's the current poll!**

 **Adam (?): 6**

 **Fox: 1**

 **Jaune: 2**

 **Mercury: 2**

 **Neptune: 1**

 **Ozpin: 13**

 **Qrow: 4**

 **Ren: 3**

 **Sage: 1**

 **Scarlet: 1**

 **Sun: 1**

 **Blake (?): 5**

 **Pyrrha: 1**

 **Ruby (?): 1**

 **OC (?): 6**

 **A sudden increase in competitors, but at this rate I suppose Ozpin will win. But somebody now adds Ruby into the mix… well, I'm not going to complain.**

 **Actually, I want to make a lot more comments and respond to each of your reviews, but time is running short. I have to manage with this.**

 **Now that's over with, let's go to the teaser for Chapter 6 and the second Night chapter, "Burning Night: Flames that Stalk the Shadows"**

* * *

"Chill, man. I just saved your girl, didn't I?"

"Thank you."

"You'll pay for this, Blondie!"

"Oh, ever the fool. You won't escape me again."

"Over my dead body!"

"Yang! Are you okay!?"

"Continuing your mission?"

"If he trusts that girl, then there is no reason for me not to."

"I suppose it's time for me to use a pair of real eyes~"

"You really like those colors, do you?"

"I am her sister, after all. I am a part of her, and she is a part of me."

* * *

 **And… that's it! Sorry, but I have never made teasers for my chapters before, so if it is of low quality, consider this one a training for me. Leave your thoughts in the reviews of PMs.**

 **Thank you for following the developments of Nightmare Angel so far!**


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